Wicked: The Whole Story
by ReallyObsessiveWriter
Summary: Elphaba's only dream was to go to Shiz University, and when her dream comes true, she finds out that it may be harder than it originally seemed. Born with skin as green as sin, she faces hardships that others can only dream of.
1. Chapter 1

Elphaba closed her book and watched as the sun started to set over the lake on the property of Colwen Grounds where her family, the ruling Governors of Munchkinland, resided. She was sitting under her favorite willow tree and was having one of the few moments she could get for herself.

If one approached her, they might have at first thought that it was a trick of the setting sun that made it seem like her skin was a green as the leaves of the tree she leaned against, but as they got closer, they would have realized her skin was actually green. She had been born that way and had been despised all of her life because of it.

Her eyes widened as she realized how late it was and she quickly stuffed her book in the potato sack satchel she had made for herself. She started to stand up, not seeing the man who approached her from behind.

"You were supposed to be home hours ago," her father said in a disturbingly quiet voice. His eyes had hazed over and the faint smell of alcohol lurked around him. "I would ask you what you've been doing, but I can see that now."

She gulped and gasped in pain when he bent down and grabbed her arm roughly. Tears pricked her eyes, but she blinked them back, refusing to cry and satisfy her father by breaking down in front of him. He shook her, screaming at her unintelligibly as she just tried to block out the pain.

"Your job is to take care of your sister," he yelled, punctuating every syllable with a teeth-shattering shake. "I have made it clear before that your education and pleasure is secondary to taking care of her, and I find out her reading one of your books."

He threw her against the tree and she whimpered as the back of her head came into contact with the smooth trunk. Something hot and wet trickled down the back of her neck and Elphaba was sure that it was blood.

"Please, stop it, I'm sorry," she whispered, starting to beg. This was farther than her father had gone in a long time, and the last time he had gone this far had left her with scars she would keep for the rest of her life. "Please, stop, you're hurting me."

"No, I'm not going to stop until I think you're sufficiently punished," he growled, picking her up by the collar of her dress and throwing her back down to the ground. He slapped her across the face and dragged her out from under the willow tree, making her skin tear on rocks protruding from the ground. "I want to make sure you never do this again. I want to make sure that you never do anything again."

He kept dragging her closer and closer to the lake and she started to kick and thrash as she realized he wasn't going to stop. When he kicked her in the side, she stopped resisting because she felt one of her ribs crack.

"You are going to regret that you were ever born," he whispered in her ear as he picked her up by the collar and brought her close to him. "You have been a nuisance and a plague to this family since you came into this world. You don't deserve to live."

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I won't do it again," she whimpered, aware of the large body of water directly below her. "What did I do to deserve this?"

"You were born," her father growled angrily. "Your green skin is an outward sign of your wickedness. You are the devil in the disguise of a human. You deserve to die, and die you will."

Then he let go of her. She opened her mouth to scream, but no sound came out. Everything seemed to go in slow motion as she dropped towards the water. She saw the smug smile on her father's face and the satisfied look in his eyes before she plunged into the water.

The shocking coldness of the water hit her like a slap in the face and she opened her mouth in surprise, letting the water fill her lungs. Trying to swim towards the surface, she kicked desperately, but only seemed to sink deeper into the depths of the lake.

She could see arrow-like shapes dart past her and felt things brush up against her. Her heavily booted foot hit the floor of the lake and the last thing she saw was a hand reaching out to grab her before everything went black.

Elphaba started coughing up water as soon as she regained consciousness. She was lying on her stomach by the edge of the lake and shakily got to her hands and knees as she continued to throw up lake water.

When she finally gained control over herself and stopped coughing, she looked up to see an abnormally tall Munchkin boy her own age laying on his back and breathing heavily. He wore only the traditional Munchkin breeches the working class wore, although there was a pile of clothes thrown carelessly on the ground only a few feet away from his head.

"What in the Unnamed god do you think you were doing?" he gasped as he sat up and stared at her incredulously. "If I hadn't come by the moment I did, then you would probably still be at the bottom of the lake, dead, with the fishes eating the meat from your bones. Did you purposely try to drown yourself or something? Don't you know how to swim?"

She shook her head and quickly came up with an explanation. "I thought I saw something in the water and leaned in too far," she said, hoping that the boy would buy it. "I was never taught how to swim when I was younger; my parents never saw the need for me to learn."

"Well, try to be more careful next time," he grumbled, pulling on a shirt and putting a worker's vest over it. "I won't be here to save you next time. I'm only visiting relatives here."

"There won't be a next time," Elphaba mumbled. "And thanks for risking your life to save me. If there's anything I can do for you…"

"Don't mention it," he said, looking away, embarrassed. "It was no problem." He turned back after a few minutes and squinted at her in the dim light. "Are you okay? You look a little green."

She laughed. "That's because I _am_ green," she said. "I'm Elphaba Thropp, Third Descending of Munchkinland, and Heir to the Eminent Thropp. You are officially in Nest Hardings on the Colwen Grounds of the ruling class of the Thropps."

The boy's face blanched. "Your Excellency!" he exclaimed, bowing at the waist in the traditional Munchkin bow. "I had no idea…I apologize for being so rude. Is there anything I can do for you?"

Elphaba laughed again. "You just saved my life; I don't think there's anything more you can do for me. Although it would be greatly appreciated if you didn't tell anyone about what just happened. There would be…very big consequences if the wrong people found out, for both you and me. And as next governor-in-line, I do have a duty to protect my future subjects."

He nodded. "I never formally introduced myself," he said, bowing again. "I am Boq of the Northern region of Munchkinland. I live in the city of Center Munch."

"Please just talk to me like you were before," Elphaba said. "I really hate formalities. I think they're really stupid."

Boq visibly relaxed and smiled at her. "Well, it was nice meeting you, Miss Elphaba, but I have to go. My family will be worried about me. And I don't want to get blamed for kidnapping you if the Eminent Thropp sends a search party out for you."

She smiled thinly, pretending to be amused by the joke. The only reason her father would send out a search party would be for appearances. If he just dropped her in the lake while knowing she couldn't swim, it was almost certain that he wanted her dead, and he most likely assumed she was.

"Will I see you again?" she asked hopefully, momentarily banishing the thoughts from her mind.

"No," Boq said ruefully. "Me and my parents are going back home tomorrow afternoon and we're spending all tomorrow morning packing and saying goodbye to family. It really was nice meeting you, though."

"Nice meeting you too," she said glumly as he trudged away. She walked over to the willow tree, retrieved her satchel from where it had been dropped, and trudged back to the manor.

"Go get cleaned up," her nurse exclaimed when she saw Elphaba open the front door and track mud in. She could see the amazement and horror in her eyes as she called for a servant to come wipe up the mud. The nurse would ask what happened to her later, and she would have to make up a convincing story that didn't involve her father or Boq.

She quickly cleaned herself up, leaving her clothes in a pile on her bedroom floor for the maid to pick up. When she had first been able to dress herself, she had tried to do her own laundry, but the house staff had finally gotten irritated enough to tell her father. He had "talked" to her about it, and that was the end of Elphaba bringing shame to the family name by doing chores.

After putting a healing ointment on her cuts and bruises, she wrapped them up with bandages and pulled on a long-sleeved nightgown that reached down to the floor. She knew better than to let her little sister, Nessarose, or her little brother, Shell, see her injuries, so she took careful care to hide them as best she could. If too many of the wrong questions were asked, then her father would come after her again.

She was only fourteen years old.


	2. Chapter 2

Elphaba sat alone in a compartment on the train, watching her wheelchair-bound sister, Nessarose, talk to her father animatedly. It had been four years since the lake incident and she had deliberately tried to stay out of her father's way ever since. She was unable to do so all of the time, so when she was beaten, she usually got it worse than she normally would have.

He had given her a lecture before they had set out from Colwen Grounds the morning before for the train station in the Glikkus. Shiz University accepted Nessa two years early and she had begged their father to have Elphaba go to look after her instead of a traditional caretaker. The University awarded Elphaba a scholarship for passing all entrance exams with full marks, and even then, her father was reluctant to let her go. After he had conceded, he had made it explicitly clear that the care of Nessa would be Elphaba's main priority.

"Look here," he said, pulling her aside before they boarded the train that morning to reinforce his lecture. "You are here to take care of your sister, education comes only after this. If I hear anything, and I mean anything, about you other than good reports, I will pull you out and you will come home to finish your education to become Eminent Thropp. Do you understand?"

She had nodded then, but inside she had been jumping for joy. The chance to get into Shiz University was something a student with any true ambition would do anything for. And it was extremely difficult to get into the University from Munchkinland. Elphaba was one of the only two girls from Munchkinland going, the other being her sister.

Now she jut sat in the train compartment, her brand new satchel lying next to her on the seat and her trunk and suitcase stowed in the overhead compartments. There was a patter of footsteps and Elphaba looked up to see her younger brother, Shell, with an excited expression on his face.

"Elphaba, look out the window!" he exclaimed, pointing at the changing scenery. "We're out of the Glikkus; we're in Gillikin, now. Father said we're going to go through the Gillikin Forrest! Do you think we'll see any lions or tigers or bears?"

"No, I don't think so," Elphaba said, smiling. "They'll most likely be scared away by the sound of the train. Now sit down, Shell. You'll get hurt if the train stops suddenly."

Shell grinned and sat down, bouncing with each bump the train made. Elphaba only chuckled and shook her head, amused by the antics of her brother. He gabbled on about how excited he was, the changing scenery, and how he was sad to see Elphaba leaving.

"Nessa is so boring," he complained with a small frown. "I love her, but sometimes it gets me mad when she tells me to stop running, or how I'm giving her a headache by talking too loud. And she's always trying to get me to tell her what I've done wrong so she can pray for me."

Elphaba nodded understandingly. Nessarose was always complaining about something. Someone was giving her a headache, or she was too tired, or Elphaba was reading too much and not paying enough attention to her. And she was constantly trying to push her religion onto her. Nessa knew that Elphaba didn't believe in the Unnamed god, so she constantly barraged her with religious lectures. She had inherited that side from their father, Frexspar.

"You're lots more fun," Shell continued, grinning again. "You always play with me, unless you're doing what Father told you to do. I'm gonna miss you."

"I'll miss you, too, Shell," Elphaba said with a sad smile. "Who else will I play field hockey with? I'm not sure that any of the girls play or the boys would be willing to let me play with them."

"Just whack them over the head with your hockey stick," he suggested seriously. "If you hurt the guy bad enough, they'll be short one player and they'll _have_ to let you play."

She laughed and Shell joined in. "For a boy only twelve years old, you're pretty smart," she said. "But I think I might be expelled if I do that."

"Then you can come back home and play with me," he said brightly.

"I think I'll focus on taking care of Nessa and then my studies," Elphaba said, still laughing. "But if I get the opportunity, I'll see if there are any teams who'll let me play."

Shell looked upset. "That's not fair," he said. "I don't think you should have to take care of Nessa while you're in college. She should have a caretaker like Father wanted, except you should be allowed to go, too. You got that scholarship, so Father wouldn't have to pay, anyways."

Elphaba glanced over at her father worriedly to make sure he had not heard and spoke to Shell in an anxious tone of voice. "please don't say that," she said urgently. "If Father hears you…I won't be able to protect you, now. You have to be careful."

"You won't be able to protect me from what?" Shell asked, a confused expression masking his face.

"If I tell you, I wouldn't be protecting you," she said. "Now promise me you won't say those things to Father. He would be very upset. You know how he feels about Nessa. And Nessa would also be upset if she heard you."

He nodded. "Okay, but I don't think he would punish me. He always gives me presents and when I mess up, he usually just tells me to apologize. Even when I'm mean to Nessa or something."

But Elphaba knew better than Shell did. There had been multiple times she had stepped in front of Shell to receive the beating or had diverted their father's attention. There had been times that had come close, too close, to their father beating Shell, and she didn't want him to ever know the pain or embarrassment of being hit by their father. The only person, other than himself, who could be perfect in his eyes, was his precious Nessarose. She was the only one who never got in trouble. It was always someone else's fault, and that someone else was usually Elphaba.

"As long as you don't get him too angry," she said, relaxing and glancing over at her father again.

The train started to slow and came to a stop. Elphaba automatically placed her hand on her satchel to keep it from falling off the seat.

"Traum!" the conductor called, walking up the aisle between the train compartments. "All off for Traum who's going off!"

Shell eagerly rushed to the compartment door to see the passengers getting off and on. Elphaba could tell that most of the passengers getting on were Shiz students by the school colors they wore. Many of the girls wore blue skirts and white blouses, and those of both genders wore blue and white striped blazers. Many of the boys wore blue and white striped ties.

"All aboard who's coming aboard!" the conductor yelled after twenty minutes. The corridors of the train cars were packed with people trying to get into their respective compartments and Elphaba was glad she had been one of the first people on the train.

"What's the next stop?" Shell asked when the corridor started to clear out.

"Brox Hall," she said, looking at the train schedule she had been given when she had gotten on the train. "After that it will be Red Sand, then Settica, Wittica, and Frottica, with a stop in the Pertha Hills, most likely for students from the Vinkus. Then we'll be turning around and our last stop will be at Dixxi House before Shiz."

"Have you ever been to the Vinkus?" Shell asked excitedly. "What's it like?"

She shook her head. "No, I have never been to the Vinkus, but I've heard that it's dry and arid in most places, with exception of the mountains, where it snows for most of the year, and the Thousand Year Grasslands, where it rains more occasionally so the grass can grow."

"What's Quadling Country like?" he asked.

Elphaba sighed as she recalled her days spent in Quadling Country when she was a child. "It was always raining," she finally said. "There was only one day where it didn't rain, which was the day Father and I arrived for the first time. The Quadlings saw it as a good omen. Most of them are very superstitious, keeping idols of their gods in their homes, on necklaces, and in pockets. Father, of course, was very disapproving."

She was very far back in her memories, and she flinched as she recalled the multiple beatings. "It was swampy there, too. The only trees that grew were small and gnarled, stunted in their growth. They were nothing compared to the ones at Colwen Grounds, and they would look like bushes compared to Quoxwood trees."

"Have you ever been to Quox?"

"No," she said. "Although, I did see a small Quoxwood tree, once. Just a tiny one, though. It was only an inch high, and the man brought in a picture of a full-grown Quoxwood tree with a man sitting next to it. The man looked like one of the little people in the storybooks I used to read to you when you were smaller."

"Have you…?"

"Shell, really, I don't think I can answer all of your questions," Elphaba laughed. "The only way you can do that is by going to school. And I know that you skipped school last Thursday. Do you promise not to do that while I'm away?"

He hung his head. "Yes, Elphaba," he murmured.

She was about to say something else when someone barged into their compartment. "What is _that_?" a small blonde-haired woman asked, pointing at Elphaba. She had straight, shoulder-length hair, bright blue eyes, and was wearing a white skirt with a matching jacket and cap. A group of giggling girls surrounded her, all of them Elphaba's own age.

"It looks like an artichoke to me," another girl said.

"She's my sister, and you will treat her with proper respect," Shell said, his face growing red. "She is Elphaba Thropp, Third Descending of Munchkinland, and Heir to the Eminent Thropp."

"Oh, poor boy, it must be torture to be related to someone like her," another girl said, and Elphaba leapt up to keep Shell from attacking them.

"I suggest you all go back to your own compartments," Elphaba growled after she forced Shell to sit. "Antagonizing a boy five or six years your junior isn't approved of by many. At least it isn't where I come from."

"What is going on here?" a deep voice demanded, and Elphaba's father came into view. "Elphaba, didn't I tell you to keep out of trouble?"

Shell stood up quickly. "Father, it wasn't…" he started.

Elphaba silenced him with a glare. "It was my fault, Father," she said. "I apologize."

She stepped back and sat down as the unwanted visitors filed out of her compartment and her father followed them, closing the doors. Shell looked ashamed and stared down in his lap. "I'm sorry," he mumbled. "I got you in trouble."

"No, Shell, you didn't," Elphaba said. "I got me in trouble, and I don't want you to go blaming yourself for anything that just happened. Those girls were being stupid and you reacted appropriately to the situation. It was my fault on how I reacted."

"But…"

"No buts, don't blame yourself. Now why don't you go get yourself something to eat before we get to Brox Hall," she said, handing him a few coins. "And hurry right back, I don't want you talking to strangers or getting into fights."

He grinned and disappeared into the corridor, coming back five minutes later with a sandwich and two plates. He gave her the change and half of the sandwich, insisting that since it was her money, she should have some of the food.

The train ride passed without incident for a short amount of time, that is, until the stop in the Pertha Hills where the students who were coming from the Vinkus were to board. Shell pressed his face against the glass, eager to see tribesmen and women who were dressed in their traditional garb. He was sorely disappointed that they were wearing normal clothes just like anyone else.

"Why aren't they wearing loincloths?" he asked Elphaba, crossing his arms over his chest. "My book on Winkies said they wore loincloths."

"Shell, don't call them Winkies," Elphaba scolded. "You know that is a very derogative term. And I've told you that before, so don't act like you didn't know. And they aren't subject to your every whim. I'm sure they didn't want to stand out as much, so they have clothes they wear into town, and clothes they use while they're out in the desert for long periods of time."

"Look, that boy has tattoos!" he suddenly yelled, jumping to the window and pointing to a little boy who had black print all over his face and what could be seen of his arms. "Do you think Father would let me get tattoos like that?"

"Stop pointing," Elphaba said, batting his hand down. "It's rude, and I've told you that before, too. And no, Father wouldn't let you get tattoos like that because that is a tribal ritual, and you know he would never take part in something he considered heathen."

Their father had been a priest before he had inherited the title of Eminent Thropp from Melena's father when he had died. He had been very religious and had kept up his strict rules long after he stopped his career as a priest. Elphaba was the opposite of religious and constantly defied his rules about praying to the Unnamed god, and so she got constant tirades about religion, heathen cultures, and how she was the spawn of the devil and would go to hell for not trying to repent of her sins.

"So, you get away with it," Shell said, slumping back in his seat.

"And that is totally different and none of your business," Elphaba said. "If you really want tattoos, take it up with Father and you can see what he says about it. I guarantee that he will not let you get them."

The train lurched forward and the corridors started to clear out. Both Shell and Elphaba were silent as they watched the train station rush by. There was a knock on the compartment door and it slid open.

A young man with long, wavy blonde hair stood in the corridor, looking at Elphaba with shining blue eyes. He was dressed in some khaki pants and a white shirt with a vest over it, but the most distinguishing feature about him were the blue diamonds tattooed all over his face, hands, and forearms.

"May I sit with you?" he asked.

"Who are you?" Elphaba asked coldly.

He looked surprised. "Well…um, I…my name is, uh, Prince Fiyero Tiggular of the Arjiki Tribe, which is, uh, the, um, ruling tribe of the, uh, Vinkus. You can, uh, call me just Fiyero if you want, though. I, uh, really don't mind."

"Nice to meet you, Master Fiyero," she said with sarcasm. "I am Elphaba Thropp, Third Descending of Munchkinland, and Heir to the Eminent Thropp. And this is my brother, Shell Thropp, Fifth Descending of Munchkinland."

"It's nice to meet you, Your Excellency," Fiyero said.

Elphaba turned to Shell quickly. "Shell, can you go find the conductor and ask him when we will be arriving at Dixxi House?"

"But…" he started to protest.

"Shell, go find the conductor and ask him when we'll be arriving at Dixxi House," Elphaba said more firmly.

He frowned and shuffled out of the compartment, and Elphaba pulled Fiyero in, slamming the door shut. "What do you really want?" she asked angrily. "Because I really am not in the mood for any games or antics. As I told you before, that is my brother who just left, and he is extremely protective of me. And I am even more protective of him. If you even make him _suspect_ that you want to hurt me in any way and you set him off, I will personally hunt you down and…"

"Look, I don't want to do anything to you," he said, backing away and putting his hands up in the air. "All I wanted was to sit with you. I'm sorry, I thought you were different." He turned to leave.

"Yeah, I'm different!" Elphaba yelled. "As you can probably tell, unless you're colorblind, I'm green, big deal! You've had your fun coming and spying on the ugly green girl, so you can go now."

"You think I came in here to make fun of you?" he asked incredulously. "I came in here because I thought you understood how I felt. Sure, I heard the rumors out there about the mysterious green girl in compartment twelve, but I didn't come to gawk at you and make fun."

"Then what did you come here for?" Elphaba asked, crossing her arms over her chest. "And don't lie and tell me that you want to be my friend, because we both know that isn't true."

"Because I thought that you knew what it was like to be me," he said. "I thought that because you were like me, you knew what it was like. I thought that I had finally found someone who would understand without me having to explain. But I can see that I was wrong."

He turned once again to leave, but Elphaba spoke up. "What _is_ it like to be you?" she asked. "What's it like to be a prince who is admired by all of his subjects? What's it like to be admired by people, even if you go out of your country and you're made fun of? If you can give me an answer that it relatively similar to what I go through, then we can talk some more."

"When I'm in the Vinkus, everyone points, bows, and calls me by my titles," he said, turning to face her again. "And when I'm anywhere else in Oz, it's pointing, staring, gawking, and teasing. No one understands my culture and the honor that comes with these tattoos, just like no one gets to know you before they judge you."

Elphaba laughed mirthlessly. "You think I'm respected by Munchkinlanders?" she asked. "Do you honestly think that they look at me and think I'm one of the most dignified people there are? Do you think that honor is attached to my skin? Because if you did, you were wrong. No one in my country likes me, and no one outside of my country likes me."

She opened the compartment door. "It really was nice talking to you," she said quietly. "And I expect never to talk to you again. At least not like this. Maybe if you come to understand, I'll listen."

Fiyero left the compartment with his hands in his pockets, and immediately afterwards, Shell walked in, his eyes wide. "Did he kiss you?" he whispered.

"No," she whispered, managing to muster up a smile for him. "What did the conductor say?"

Shell looked disappointed. "Twenty minutes," he muttered.

"Look, Shell, I don't want to talk about what just happened," Elphaba said. "I don't want you to be hurt…"

"Yeah, and what happens when you're gone?" he asked, looking up at her with tear-filled eyes. "You won't be able to protect me anymore, Elphaba. I'm twelve years old, what were you going through when you were twelve? I think I can handle some stuff on my own, okay?"

He stormed out of the compartment and slammed the door shut behind him, leaving Elphaba to gape after him. She spent the rest of the train ride to Shiz by herself.


	3. Chapter 3

The carriage Elphaba had hailed at the train station lurched to a stop and she stumbled out, dragging her trunk, suitcase, and satchel behind her. She handed some money to the driver and he took it, looking at her with a disgusted expression on his face before lightly tapping his whip to his horse and driving off. Elphaba just sighed and turned around.

The main building of Shiz University stood before her. A large, white dome rose above the buildings around it, noble columns held up an overhead, and solid gold doors were opened by smartly dressed attendants. She knew she didn't belong in a setting like this, but it was something she had dreamed of for her whole life.

Slinging her satchel over her shoulder, Elphaba picked up her suitcase and headed towards the front doors, dragging her trunk behind her. The door attendant stepped back in surprise when he saw her and neglected to offer to help her with her trunks. Stepping as far away as possible, he opened the door for her and let it go as soon as she was inside; knocking over her trunk and making it spill open.

Elphaba struggled to put all of her clothes and personal items back in her trunk before anyone stepped on them and got up when she was finished, her face burning. A crowd of people had gathered around her and was laughing, and not one of them had offered to help. She pushed through the people, which wasn't hard because none of them wanted to get close enough to her to touch her, and made her way towards a group of students gathering on the other side of the room.

She set her suitcase down and looked up as everyone stopped talking and turned to stare at her.

"What? What are you looking at?" she asked, putting her hands up to her mouth. "Oh, do I have something in my teeth?"

There was a complete and total silence and she rolled her eyes, putting her hands on her hips. "Okay, let's get this over with. No, I'm not seasick, yes, I've always been green, no, I didn't eat grass as a child…"

"Elphaba…" Nessa said warningly.

She turned around and looked at Nessa. "Oh, and have you met my sister, Nessarose Thropp? As you can see, she is a perfectly normal color…"

"Elphaba, stop drawing attention to yourself and get over here," her father said. "You know the only reason you're here…"

"Is to take care of Nessa," Elphaba finished. "I'll do my best, father. I only want to please you."

"Well, your best isn't good enough," he said. "Nothing is good enough for my sweet Nessarose. Are you sure you want to stay here with only your sister to help you? I could take her back home and send an Ama…"

"Father, no one has an Ama here," Nessa said, gesturing to all of the girls that were without chaperones. "I'll be fine. Elphaba will take care of me. Won't you Fabala?"

"Of course, that's what I'm here for," Elphaba said as cheerfully as she could. She really hated it when Nessa and her father called her Fabala, and she knew that Nessa would really be relying on her to escort her all over the campus to all of her classes. She wouldn't be happy when she found out that Elphaba had a full schedule Monday through Friday.

"One more thing, my sweet Nessa," Frex said, taking the box that Shell was holding out to him. "I've gotten you a present to help you ease into college life and to help you remember me at home. I saw you admiring them in the shop window in town last week."

He pulled out a beautiful pair of silver-jeweled shoes and both Nessarose and Elphaba gasped. Elphaba had seen the price on them and knew that they had cost a fortune. He had never spent this much before on a single item before, not even on Nessa.

"Father, they're beautiful," Nessa said, reverently taking them and staring at them in amazement. "But I can't accept them; they must have cost a fortune. Here, you take them back and use the money for something useful."

She attempted to hand the shoes back, but Elphaba could see the longing for them in her eyes, and knew her father could see it, too. Nessa had always been very frugal and giving due to her religious beliefs. She prayed to the Unnamed god at least three times a day and used some of her money for charity.

"No, you deserve them, my daughter," Frexspar said, holding his hands up. "And as the next Governor of Munchkinland, you should show your class. That is why I had your sister take you shopping before you came here. I can't have you going around in your old clothes."

"Oh, thank you, Father!" Nessa exclaimed, hugging the shoes to her chest. "This is the most wonderful gift anyone has ever given to me. Fabala, will you help me put them on, please?"

Elphaba nodded, kneeling in front of her sister and gently unlacing her brown boots. She had large, bulky braces on her legs because of her condition, but Nessa was very good at hiding them. Taking the jeweled shoes from her sister, Elphaba gently slipped them on her feet.

Their father smiled at Nessa. "They look truly exquisite on you," he said, kissing her on the head. "I'll be sending you a chaperone to escort you back to Colwen Grounds during your break. I love you, my rose."

"I love you, too, Father," Nessa replied, kissing him on his offered cheek.

"Elphaba, I want weekly reports," he said, turning to her. "No exception. And if I hear of one thing that goes wrong that includes you or Nessa, you're being pulled out of school, am I understood?"

"Yes, Father," Elphaba murmured.

He turned on his heel and walked away, Shell following him closely. Elphaba watched them both go, longing to run after them and sweep Shell up in a hug and peck her father on the cheek, but she held herself back. Neither one of them would appreciate it if she did that.

She turned to Nessa and forced a smile. "The shoes are beautiful," she said.

Nessa looked at her with a shocked expression on her face. "Oh, Elphaba, Father didn't get you anything, did he?" she asked. "I'll write to him and…"

"No, don't waste your time," Elphaba said, shaking her head. "I really appreciate it, though. And besides, I clash with everything."

Suddenly there was increased chatter and she turned around to see a large woman with a pile of gray hair sitting on top of her head, an overly powdered face, outrageously red lips, and a dress that extended at least four feet out from her body. Elphaba could only assume that this was the greatly esteemed Madame Morrible, Headmistress of Shiz University, and Overseer of Crage Hall, one of the girls' main dormitories.

"Students, attention please," she said in a commanding voice, holding the clipboard she held in her hands up above her head, and everyone quieted down. "My name is Madame Morrible, Headmistress of Shiz and, for some, Overseer of your dormitories. You all have been chosen or have been elected to the twenty-five open spaces for Oz's future leaders depending on political rank and grades on the entrance exams."

She looked around at all of them. "I expect that no matter what you major in, you will all strive to do the best you can. Only the best are accepted into this program, and you _will_ be removed from the program if any of your professors feels that you are not living up to the standards. Am I understood?"

There were murmurs of acknowledgment and a few head nods and Madame Morrible smiled, which made her look slightly maniacal. "It's good to know that we're on the same page," she said, looking down at her clipboard. "Now for room assignments."

"Excuse me, Madame Morrible," someone said, and the crowd of students parted to let the blonde girl through, the girl who had made fun of Elphaba on the train. Elphaba snorted and rolled her eyes, earning a disapproving glare from Nessa, when the blonde stopped in front of Morrible, slightly pink in the face and out of breath. "I am Galinda Upland of the Upper Uplands."

"Is this regarding room assignments?" Madame Morrible asked, looking down at the girl over her spectacles.

"Oh, I've already been assigned to a private suite," the girl said. "But actually, I was wondering about my essay I mailed in for the requirements for the sorcery seminar you teach. Mine was entitled: 'Wands, Need they have a Point?'" She giggled.

"Is she serious?" Elphaba murmured, and Nessa shot her another glare, silencing her once again.

"Ah, I remember," Madame Morrible said, nodding. "But you see, I only teach my seminar once a year, or when someone special comes along…"

"Exactly," Galinda said brightly. "You see, I am from the Arduenna line of witches, and every woman in my family before me all the way up to Rhiannon, my great grandmother fifteen generations back, has been schooled in sorcery in one area or another."

"Perhaps next semester, Miss Galinda," Madame Morrible said, dismissing her with a wave of the hand. "Now where was I?"

"We still haven't gotten our room assignments, Madame," Elphaba said.

"Ah, yes," Madame Morrible said without looking up. And she started rattling off names, room numbers, and class schedules, handing papers and keys to the students as they went up to receive them. "And Miss Nessarose Thropp will be rooming with me at the request of her father," she said, looking up from her list.

"Madame," Elphaba said, noticing that her name hadn't been called.

Madame Morrible turned around and gasped when she saw Nessarose. "Oh, how tragically beautiful."

She turned towards Elphaba and jumped in surprise. "And you are…?"

"I'm Elphaba Thropp, the other daughter," she said. "I'm beautifully tragic."

"Ah, yes," Madame Morrible said, patting her awkwardly on the shoulder. "I'm sure you're very bright."

"You're joking, right?" Galinda asked. "She simply fluorescent!"

There were laughs and rude comments designed after Galinda's remark, but Elphaba stayed calm, used to the teasing from eighteen years of experience.

"Madame, you haven't assigned me a room," Elphaba said. "And I would prefer if I roomed with my sister. You see, I've always looked after her, and that's why I'm here…"

"Your father gave me very specific instructions to look after Miss Nessarose myself, and that is what I plan on doing," she said. "Your main focus, as our top student, is your studies, and I expect it to stay that way. Now, is there anyone who would like to share their room with Miss Elphaba?"

"Madame…" Galinda said, stepping forward.

"Oh, thank you Miss Galinda," Madame Morrible said. "That's so kind of you?"

"What?" the blonde asked, screwing up her face in confusion.

"Please, Madame, Nessa and I always…" Elphaba started.

"The decision is final," Madame Morrible said authoritatively, handing an extra key to Elphaba and a schedule. "Miss Elphaba Thropp will be rooming with Miss Galinda Upland, and that is final. Now, everyone to their dormitories!"

Madame Morrible took the handles of Nessa's wheelchair and started pushing her away from Elphaba. Elphaba started to get angry. Her father had forgotten to make sure she had a room in Crage Hall. She had been sent to take care of her sister, and now she was being taken away from her. People weren't even taking the chance to get to know her, once again, before they started making fun of her.

"Bring. Her. Back!" she yelled. Suddenly the lights flickered and turned off, leaving the enormous room to be lit by the minimal skylights that had been installed in the ceiling. People started screaming as sparks of light started whizzing around their heads. And Nessa's wheelchair jerked out of Madame Morrible's hands, spinning around the room of its own accord as Nessa screamed, before it stopped in front of Elphaba.

The lights flickered back on and Elphaba struggled to get her breath back, realizing what she had done. Kneeling in front of Nessa, she attempted to pry her hands from her face, but was unsuccessful.

"Nessa, I'm so sorry, I don't know what came over me," she said quickly, setting her hands on her sister's lap. "Please, please forgive me. I honestly didn't mean to. I only wanted to help you."

She saw Madame Morrible out of the corner of her eye and quickly stood up, rushing over to her. "I am so sorry, Madame Morrible, I promise this won't happen again," she said as fast as she could. "I'll learn to control it, it won't happen again. Please don't kick me out…"

"Don't apologize for talent, my dear," Madame Morrible interrupted, waving it all away with a simple hand gesture. "And why would I kick you out for something that you so obviously can't help?"

"Wait, you aren't kicking me out?" Elphaba asked, her eyebrows knitting together in confusion. "But…I just…"

"I will admit that this is not the most comfortable of situations and I will have a lot to explain to the Board of Directors, but I most certainly will not throw a student out of Shiz who is as talented as you are," Madame Morrible said. "Not for some other university to pick up and train as the Wizard's Magic Grand Vizier. Do you know how long I've waited for someone like you to come along?"

"Wait, _the_ Wizard?" Elphaba asked, her eyes widening.

"How many other wizards are there?" Madame Morrible asked. "I expect to see you in my office at seven o'clock Monday morning to talk about your future. You will be the only student I take into my seminar and I will personally tutor you. I will take your sister and will write a letter to the Wizard informing him of you as soon as I get to my office today. That will be the first thing on my agenda."

This shocked Elphaba so much that she didn't realize that Madame Morrible was gradually walking away from her, pushing Nessa's wheelchair in front of her. The group of students gradually dissipated until it was just Elphaba and Galinda standing there.

"How did _you_ get into Madame Morrible's sorcery seminar?" Galinda asked scathingly.

Elphaba just shook her head. "Honestly, I have no idea."

_**Please Review! Thanks-ReallyObsessiveWriter**_


	4. Chapter 4

Elphaba checked the number on her key and looked at the room number, twenty-two. She fit the key in the lock and turned it, flicking on the light as she stepped into the room. Galinda hadn't been joking when she said she had been assigned to a private suite. Elphaba had just walked into a small receiving parlor with a coffee table and two armchairs in it.

"Who is this girl that she gets treated like royalty?" Elphaba murmured as she maneuvered past the chairs and into the hallway leading to the rest of the dormitory. The hall was narrow and she had trouble dragging her trunk and suitcase through it, but she finally go to the main area.

The room was larger than Elphaba had expected it to be. Because Elphaba was going to be rooming Galinda, an extra bed and dresser had been put in, pushed up against the left-hand wall while Galinda's bed, already set with frilly pink blankets and pillows, and her dresser, which was covered in perfumes and accessories, had been pushed up against the right wall.

She set her trunk down by her bed and went through a doorway that ended up being Galinda's walk-in closet. It was as big as the room she had just come from. "Figures," she muttered to herself. "And I suppose I get a coat rack or something."

It turned out she also got a closet, although it wasn't half as large as Galinda's. She was able to hang all her clothes inside or fold them up neatly and put them on shelves. Galinda had a lot more clothes than she did, and if Elphaba had been given the larger closet, she wouldn't have known what to do with all of the space.

Exploring the rest of the room, she found a large bathroom with two sinks, making Elphaba wonder why any one person would need two sinks in a bathroom if Galinda had originally had this room to herself. There were four shelves for storing personal items; two on either side of the sinks, and one of them had already been taken up by Galinda's things. The one on the right and farthest away from the bathroom door.

Going back into the main room, she noticed a pair of Gillikinese doors, doors set in with small, square panes of glass, that led out to a small balcony overlooking the Shiz grounds, which were quite beautiful. A shining silver lake lay off to the right, a cobblestone path lined with trees hugging it closely for a few hundred feet before winding off towards a forest and disappearing within to reappear to the right near a gathering of large buildings.

"Who's in here?" a voice asked, and Elphaba turned around to see Galinda tentatively entering the main room.

"It's just me," she said, stepping back into the main room and closing the Gillikinese doors. "No one's broken in and stolen all of your clothes."

"What do you think you're doing waltzing in here and just throwing your stuff all over the place," Galinda snarled as soon as she saw Elphaba.

"It's my room just as much as it is yours," Elphaba said. "You heard Madame Morrible. Trust me, this isn't the most comfortable of arrangements for me and I would much rather be rooming with my sister, but I'm not allowed. I'm just trying to make this work."

"You come in here and talk like nothing's happened at all," Galinda said angrily and Elphaba stepped back in surprise, not knowing what the blonde was talking about.

"I honestly don't know what you're talking about," she said. "Is this about the conversation on the train? I'm sorry I acted so harshly, then, but he's my brother…"

"You're still thinking about the _train_?" Galinda asked. "I'm not talking about the stupid train! You deserved every single word I said to you! How could you listen to me talking to Madame Morrible about the sorcery seminar, and then go and make sure that you're the only student that she teaches!"

Elphaba looked at her incredulously. "You think I did that on purpose?" she asked. "I would have much rather that hadn't happened! Do you think that I liked losing my temper like that and let these…powers I have get out of control?"

Galinda stared at her angrily, eyes squinted menacingly. "Yes, I do," she sneered. "I think you walk around thinking you're better than everyone else because you have green skin and no one likes you and nothing anyone says can bother you."

"Oh, so I think I'm better than everyone else because I have green skin?" Elphaba asked, eyebrows shooting up into her hairline. "You know what, if you want to feel better than everyone else, I'll happily trade skin colors with you."

"Are you making fun of me?" Galinda demanded.

The green girl looked around the room indifferently. "And if I am?"

"Miss Elphaba, I am not someone you want to mess with," she said. "I can make your life so miserable: you'll wish you'd never been born."

She snorted. "Too late, Miss Galinda, I've already wished that many times before," she said. "And unfortunately for both you and I, that wish hasn't yet come true. SO wish all you want, nothing is going to change."

There was a tense silence where Galinda struggled for words, opening and shutting her mouth indecisively. Elphaba was about to brush past her when she yelled something. "I hate you!"

"The feeling is mutual," Elphaba replied calmly. "Now that we've clarified that nothing you say is going to bother me, nothing you do is going to get rid of me, and no matter how hard you wish, I am still going to be here, let's lay down some ground rules."

"Are you telling me what to do?" Galinda asked, appalled.

"No, I am telling you how things are going to be," Elphaba said, leaning forward so her face was only centimeters away from Galinda's. "I will dictate what you do, and I honestly don't care what you do. Go ahead and talk about me behind my back to your friends. Talk about me right in front of my face to your friends! I don't care. But there are some things that will not be done while we are in this room together."

She held up a finger. "Number one, you will ignore me and I will ignore you. I think that is simple. Don't talk to me; write notes to me, or try to convey anything to me in any way unless it is something that is absolutely necessary, such as telling me when your friends are coming over."

A second finger went up. "That brings me to number two. I will be studying in the library most of the time, so I won't be in the room a lot. That means you will mostly have the room to yourself. SO when I am in here, I expect it to be completely silent so I can study, read, or do what I need to do in peace and quiet.

"Third rule, you don not touch my stuff and I will not touch yours. If I find any of my things moved, it will be your fault, even if it is one of your friends who moved it. You invited them here; therefore, they are your responsibility. If you touch any of my things, I will make sure that something of yours will disappear."

The fourth finger went up and she continued. "The last thing is, do not bring your problems to me. When I said I don't care what you do, I meant it. I am not here to listen to you gripe and moan about friendship troubles. The only advice I will give you is to not make friends and shut up because I'm trying to concentrate."

She stepped back and smiled at Galinda. "You know, I really think we have a good relationship started. I'm glad that we got off to a good start."

Elphaba walked past Galinda, grabbing her satchel from her bed, and headed down the hall and out the door, leaving the blonde girl staring after her.

"Who does she think she _is_?" Galinda muttered when the door slammed shut.


	5. Chapter 5

Galinda was infuriating. Elphaba had come to that conclusion. When you first looked at her, she was perfect in every way. Blonde hair, blue eyes, shining white teeth that showed in a glittering smile. The perfect wardrobe with shoes, purse, and makeup matching her outfit. Giggling girls who followed her around like a devoted pack of puppies, ready to gossip about anything. And boys staring after her, drooling.

But once you got past the physical appearances, imperfection ruled. She was shallow, dwelling on her image and the image of others. If someone didn't match up to her criteria, they were the ones who were made fun of. In short, Galinda and Elphaba could _never_ be friends.

And it was evident that Galinda had an IQ that proved at least part of the "dumb blonde" stereotype right. If anyone were truly serious about an application for a class as advanced as Madame Morrible's sorcery seminar, than they would have put a little more thought into writing an essay, other than trying to create a play on words with the title. 'Wands, Need they have a Point?' was not going to win Galinda Upland any brownie points with Madame Morrible.

Then there was the trait that every spoiled brat who ever lived possessed. Blaming other people for their problems. It wasn't Elphaba's fault that Galinda hadn't been accepted into Madame Morrible's sorcery seminar. And now that she looked at it, she was so sure that she wanted to take the class herself. She had a full schedule, and she didn't think she could handle any more work that would be piled on top of her when the first semester started.

"It isn't my fault," she muttered, walking out of the building and onto the Shiz grounds that she had seen from the balcony in her room. Walking along the cobblestone path, she avoided everyone's gazes and stares with practiced ease, wandering along and not knowing where she was going.

She ended up standing in front of a large, sandstone building with a sign out front proclaiming 'Shiz University Library.'

"Figures," she laughed quietly to herself. "No matter where I go, I always end up in front of a library."

Libraries were her fortress, the one place she felt truly comfortable. She had always loved books. They were an open door through which she could escape from reality and into fantasies of her own. And being surrounded by doorways was something that Elphaba loved. It gave her an option, a choice that she could make on her own. Something that had never before been given to her.

Pushing the front door open, she stepped inside and gazed in awe at the books that had been gathered together in one place. There were hundreds of shelves stacked with books about everything one could name: sciences, histories, biographies, fantasies, classic literature, magazines, almanacs, dictionaries, encyclopedias, novels, periodicals, textbooks, and more.

"May I help you?" a woman behind a desk asked. "Because you're blocking the entrance and exit. That's the only one we have."

Elphaba turned a darker shade of green, her version of blushing, when she realized there were people in front of her waiting to get out and others behind her wanting to get in. She moved, mumbling apologies, and hurried towards the bookshelves, pulling off the first book she encountered, not particularly caring what it was.

"Interested in psychology?" someone asked, and she whirled around to see Fiyero leaning against one of the bookshelves, a smirk on his face.

"Master Fiyero," she said, her eyes wide. "Look, I just want to apologize for how I behaved on the train earlier today. I have an automatic defense set into my system to keep people away from me, and it was my automatic response to sound like that. I really didn't mean anything I said."

He grinned. "I know," he said, pushing himself off the bookshelf and standing up straight. "That's why I came looking for you. I think I would have responded the same way if people had treated me the same way they've treated you."

Elphaba looked at him in surprise. "You're not mad at me?" she asked.

"Should I be?" he asked, his eyebrows shooting up into his hairline.

She shrugged. "I don't know, I've never been in this situation before."

"Let's just forget the whole thing happened and start over again, then," he said. "My name is Prince Fiyero Tiggular of the Arjiki tribe, but you can call me Fiyero."

"I'm Elphaba Thropp, Third Descending of Munchkinland, and Heir to the Eminent Thropp," she said. She was unsure of what she was doing and why she was doing it, but she went along with it anyways. "But you may call me Elphaba."

"Now that we're past introductions, we can have an actual conversation," Fiyero said, pulling a book off the shelf and leafing through it. "What do you want to do is psychology? It seems like a pretty boring subject to me."

"Don't let any of the professors who teach the subject hear you say that," Elphaba said with a small smile. "And I'm not really interested in studying psychology much. I don't really know what I want to do. I'm taking a range of classes this first semester to see if anything in particular interests me."

"It's hard to believe that you don't know what you want to do, Miss Sorceress," he said, snapping his book shut and setting it on a random shelf. Elphaba huffed and tucked her own book under her arm, taking the book Fiyero had set down and putting it back in its proper place.

"How did you hear about that?" she muttered.

"First of all, I was there," he laughed. "It was pretty amazing, what you did. I think you have your whole future mapped out for you by Madame Morrible, or if you don't, she's working on it right now. Second of all, Galinda Upland is my girlfriend, and she wouldn't stop complaining about you when I was with her."

"I already told her it wasn't my fault!" Elphaba exclaimed quietly, mindful that she was in a library. "And could you be a bit more quiet? I really don't want the whole library knowing who I am and that the most popular girl at Shiz hates me."

"But the most popular guy at Shiz is your friend," he said, following her to another section of books. "That has to count for something."

"I suppose you mean you," she muttered, picking up a book. "You cancel each other out, which puts me at the level of slightly above most hated person at Shiz."

"And why would people hate you?" Fiyero asked.

She turned to him, sighing in exasperation and rolling her eyes. "It's life," she said. "You're born green, pretty much everyone hates you."

"Has it been scientifically proven?" Fiyero joked.

"So far, the results have proved my theory right," Elphaba sighed, going back to the shelf and picking out a book on theology. "Are you religious?"

When she glanced at him, he looked taken aback. "Are you trying to press your religion on me, because if you are, yes, I believe in the Lurline."

"I would be the last person to press my religion on you, considering I don't have a religion," Elphaba laughed. "And why would you think that I am devoted to Lurlinism?"

He shrugged. "I don't know, it was just the first thing that came to my mind."

"So what _is_ your religion, then?" she asked.

"My tribe believes in Kumbricia, so I believe in Kumbricia," he said nonchalantly. "That's what these tattoos are for, sort of. Devotion to the tribe and devotion to Kumbricia. Only men of great strength and potential leaders of the tribes get them. If you are able to endure the pain, then you are worthy to be respected by the tribe. I had these done when I was seven."

"That seems a little…" Elphaba struggled for words.

"Barbaric?" he suggested.

"I was going to say harsh," she replied, going back to her book and tucking it under her arm along with the psychology book. "I think you should have had a choice. Something like that shouldn't have been forced on you."

"It's not something you would understand," he said.

She looked at him and caught his eye. "There's a lot of things that you don't think I understand that I really do," she said. "And unfortunately, that's one of them."

"Would you care to explain?" he asked, interested.

"No, not really," she said, shaking her head. "I would prefer not to dredge up the memories. Some of them are…not easy to talk about."

"You are very mysterious, Miss Elphaba," Fiyero said, squinting his eyes at her as if he were trying to see inside her brain or read her like a book.

She laughed. "This is the most open I've been with anyone in my whole life," she said. "And it's most likely the most open I will ever be again. If you want to figure me out, you're going to have to do it with the information I've already given you, because I'm not going to intentionally give you any more."

"That only makes me want to figure you out even more," he said with a wry grin.

Elphaba shrugged. "Honestly, I don't care, because…you know what, I'm just going to be quiet and see if you _can_ figure me out. I think it would be quite interesting. Now, if you don't mind, I'm going to go and check these out and head back to my room. I'm sure Miss Galinda will be wanting to see you, too, so she can complain some more about me."

Fiyero tagged along after her as she headed up to the librarians desk, smoothly sliding the two books she had taken from the shelves onto to the counter. "You know, she really isn't as bad as you may think," he said, leaning down uncomfortably close to her. "You just need to get to know her."

She backed away from him, showing the librarian her schedule to verify her identity so she could create a library account. "I don't think that's going to happen, Master Fiyero," she said, taking the card the librarian handed her and signing it. "You see, our first three encounters haven't been all that successful on friendship terms. Now, I really must go, and I don't think you want Miss Galinda seeing you with me if you want to continue a romantic relationship with her."

He blushed. "I wouldn't really see it as a romantic relationship…" he started.

"Then I suggest you make that clear to Miss Galinda," Elphaba said. "Because she seems like the kind of girl who, when she falls for someone, she falls hard. And I may not be friends with her, but I don't want to hear her bawling all the time when I'm in that room and trying to sleep because you've broken up with her."

"Is someone jealous?" he asked, wriggling his eyebrows suggestively. Elphaba just rolled her eyes, grabbed her books, and pushed past him.

"I am not interested in a romantic relationship with anyone, and I don't think anyone is interested in having one with me," she said. "And besides, if you ever do break up with Miss Galinda, there is a whole campus full of girls out there who would love to go out with you. If you asked me, I would most assuredly say no."

"Well that's just uncalled for," he said, upset. "Just because…"

Elphaba turned to him as she walked out of the building and onto the path leading back to Crage Hall. "Look, Fiyero, it really has been nice talking to you, but I have things to do. Perhaps we can talk some other time. And while you're here, I really don't think you should be interested in romantics more than academics."

She turned away from him, confident that she had taken care of the situation so that he would not speak to her until at least the next day. But he proved her wrong by running after her and walking next to her.

"Look, can I ask you a favor?"

"What, Master Fiyero?" she asked, annoyed. "And if it has to do with giving a message to your girlfriend, the answer is no."

"No, it's not about that," he said quickly. "Look, you were right about the academics. I've been kicked out of four universities before this, and my parents had to pay a lot of money to get me into Shiz. If I fail out of Shiz, then my whole academic career is ruined and I'll have to go into the Guard with the Wizard until my father dies and I am needed to become the leader of the tribe."

Elphaba stopped to listen to him, her interest caught.

"I really don't want to fail out, and I need your help," he continued. "Do you think you could tutor me? I mean, it wouldn't be anything big, just…meet me in the library or something and I could ask you questions. Please, this would mean a lot to me. I would owe you a huge favor, or a couple huge favors."

She pondered what he was asking for a moment. "Fine, but on a few conditions," she said. "This revolves around my schedule. My focus here is taking care of my sister and my academics. I really don't have to be doing this for you since I just met you today. Also, you have to be at the scheduled tutoring sessions unless something _really_ important, and I stress the word 'really', comes up or you come and tell me in advance."

He nodded eagerly. "Thank you so much," he said. "I owe you big time. Oh, and if you could keep this quiet, I would really appreciate it."

"Because no one wants to associate themselves with the green girl," Elphaba muttered to herself.

"No, its not that," he said, appalled. "It's just…don't say anything about the tutoring or the academics, especially not to Galinda. You can hang out with us if you want, I don't care. Just don't talk about the tutoring. Not until I tell her. Okay?"

"Fine," Elphaba said. "Meet me in the library on Monday at five o'clock and we'll get our schedules figured out so we can both do this. And I don't mean your personal schedule, because I have no doubt that it would be nearly impossible to arrange meetings between the two of us that doesn't coincide with something on your personal schedule."

He nodded. "Meet you in the library at five o'clock on Monday," he repeated. "Got it. Thank you so much, again. You're the best. After Galinda, of course."

He hurried down the path at a jog and Elphaba stared after him. "Of course," she whispered to herself.

_**I am going to be out of town Friday through Monday, and that means I will not have any access to computers during that time. I will try to get at least one more chapter posted before Friday, maybe to, I'll see what I can do. The earliest I'll be able to post after I'm out of town is Monday evening, but I can't make any promises.**_

_**I hope you like the story so far! Please Review! -ReallyObsessiveWriter**_


	6. Chapter 6

Walking along the path back to the dormitories, Elphaba realized she hadn't yet checked with Nessa to see if she had settled or if there was anything she needed. Hurrying her footsteps, it came to her that she had no idea where her sister's room was. She was about to go into one of the buildings when she heard Fiyero's name mentioned.

"…and Fiyero are throwing a party at the OzDust Ballroom!" a boy was saying to his friends. "All the hottest girls are going to be there. You have to go!"

"Yeah, Vince, we could hook you up with someone," another boy said, nudging the boy named Vince on the arm.

"I did see this one girl…" Vince admitted, blushing.

"If it was Galinda, keep your hands off of her," the first boy said. "I tried to ask her out, but her boyfriend, Prince Fiyero Tiggular, almost picked me up and threw me in the lake! It was crazy!"

The three boys noticed Elphaba listening to them at that moment and she ducked her head down and slipped inside the dormitory building, and ended up hearing another conversation, this time between a group of girls.

"…so hot," one of the girls just finished saying. "I mean, and he must have been so brave to get all of those tattoos, too! And his eyes, have you seen his eyes?"

"Roxanne, if you want to get a guy, don't go after Fiyero," another girl advised. "Galinda Upland, the girl from Gillikin, she's dating him, and she'd be really mad if she found out you were trying to flirt with him. Go for Avaric…"

"No, don't go for Avaric," a third girl butted in. "His nose is too big for his face, and his hands are all callused! And he never compliments any girls. Find someone at the party tonight. Everyone is going to be there!"

"Everyone except me," Elphaba muttered, walking away. She was about to go to the information desk when she saw her sister being pushed down the hall by an abnormally tall Munchkin. She hurried to her side and got there just as the Munchkin opened the door.

"Elphaba, I have exciting news!" Nessa exclaimed.

"Elphaba?" the Munchkin asked, looking at her with a surprised expression on his face. "Haven't we met before?"

"Well, if you think you recognize me, then we most likely have," Elphaba said. "There aren't many green people walking around Oz, you know."

"Oh, Boq, this is my sister, Elphaba. Elphaba, this is Boq," Nessa said, introducing them.

Boq shook Elphaba's hand and gave her a hesitant smile. "I'm sure we've met before," he said. "I just can't remember where. Well, I'm sure I'll be seeing you around, and we can talk then. I have some stuff to do before the party tonight."

He walked away and Nessa stared after him longingly. "Elphaba, he's just wonderful," she sighed.

"He's going to the party, too?" Elphaba asked, wrinkling her nose in disgust. "That's all everyone's been talking about. That stupid party. Fiyero, the Arjiki prince comes along, and everyone goes off to this party to worship him. It's like a…a cult or religious gathering or something!"

"I know, even I'm going!" Nessa exclaimed, surprising Elphaba by not commenting on the remark she had made about the religious gathering. She would have normally reprimanded her and then gone to their father, or, in this case, written to him.

"Wait, you're going?" Elphaba whispered.

Nessa nodded, a large smile on her face. "Yes, isn't it wonderful?" she asked. "You see, Miss Galinda thought that Boq and I would be perfect together, and we are, even though he's a year older than me, but she had him ask me. I just wish I could do something for her to repay her kindness."

"Look, Nessa…" Elphaba started.

"Elphaba, I know you don't particularly like Miss Galinda, but I would really appreciate it if you would try," Nessa said, turning her sharp gray eyes on Elphaba, reprimanding her with a single look. "She may seem a little…unkind at first, but she really is a nice person. Just try, Elphaba, for me?"

She sighed and knelt beside her. "I'll do what I can," she said. "But I don't think she likes me, either. Perhaps I can do something to try to…bridge the gap."

"Oh, thank you, Elphaba," Nessa said, leaning over and patting her sister on the shoulder. "Could you…?"

Suddenly, Elphaba had an idea and she stood abruptly. "I know just what to do for Galinda!" she exclaimed. "I'll go talk to her and see if she agrees with me. I just know she'll be happy. Oh, Nessa, perhaps…oh, never mind. I'll see you later. Okay?"

Rushing off towards her dormitory, she burst into the room and headed down the hall to see two girls standing with Galinda by the large, walk-in closet. The two girls giggled when they saw Elphaba come in and Galinda herself hid her hands behind her back.

"Good luck!" the tall, thin brunette said as the two girls left. Elphaba recognized her from the group of girls on the train.

"Yes, good luck!" the other, shorter, black-haired girl said, following the other girl out the door. She had also been on the train with Galinda.

The door shut and Elphaba turned to look at a blushing Galinda. "Look, Galinda, Nessa and I were just talking about you…" she started.

"And I was just talking about you!" Galinda exclaimed. "You see, Pfannee, she's the taller girl who just left, and ShenShen, she's the shorter one, were just telling me how unnecessarily rude I've been to you. I told them what I said to you earlier today."

Elphaba raised her eyebrows and Galinda continued quickly.

"You see, they thought to make up for it, I would invite you to the party tonight," she said with a smile. "I really want you to come, you see, they made me realize I was being mean, and I want to make it up to you. And to show you I'm being serious, I want you to have this and wear it to the party."

She pulled a black hat from behind her back. Elphaba had never seen anything like it. It was tall, with a cone-shaped top, and a wide brim. She took it hesitantly. It was like it was calling to her.

"I think it suits you just fine," Galinda gabbled on. "You see, you go so well together, you definitely should wear it to the party! Oh, I hope I see you there, you will come, won't you?"

Elphaba opened her mouth to say something, but Galinda just laughed loudly, turned on her heel, and strutted into the bathroom, slamming the door behind her. Elphaba allowed herself a small smile as she looked down at the hat again. Perhaps she and Galinda _could_ be friends.

She stowed the hat carefully in her satchel. Galinda hadn't listened to her when she had tried to tell her about her plan to get her into the sorcery seminar with Madame Morrible, but she was sure that the bubbly blonde would appreciate it. She would have the headmistress come to the party tonight and give her the wand Galinda had written about in her essay.

Walking out the door, Elphaba almost let out a shout of joy. She was at the university of her dreams, Nessa was going to be cared for by someone else, Madame Morrible and the Munchkin, Boq, and she was about to make the first friend in her life. Nothing could go wrong, now. Nothing at all.


	7. Chapter 7

_**I'm sorry that this chapter is so short, but since I've been deprived of sleep for the past few days, I have to get some stuff done and try to get to bed so I can actually properly function tomorrow morning. I will be posting a chapter tomorrow afternoon or evening that will be longer than this one. Thank you to everyone that has reviewed, and please continue to do so!!! ReallyObsessiveWriter**_

Elphaba made her way towards Madame Morrible's office, using the directions she had gotten from a student who had actually taken the time to listen to her before running away. He had still been freaked out by her and had run away as soon as he had finished giving her directions.

She arrived just as Madame Morrible was locking up. When she saw Elphaba, she looked surprised, but quickly replaced the look with a smile that was obviously forced.

"How are you, Miss Elphaba?" she asked as Elphaba approached her. "You know our meeting isn't until Monday morning, right?"

"I'm fine thank you for asking. And I do know that our meeting is on Monday," Elphaba said, also forcing out a smile. "I was just wondering if you could do something for me."

The smile disappeared from Madame Morrible's face. "That depends on what it is," she said.

"Could you include Miss Galinda Upland in your sorcery seminar?" Elphaba asked quickly, casting her eyes down to her feet.

Madame Morrible didn't say anything, and when Elphaba looked up, she saw the woman staring at her with wide eyes, her mouth opening and closing soundlessly. "You're serious?" she finally asked. "You really want Miss Galinda in the sorcery seminar?"

Elphaba nodded. "Yes, Madame, I do," she said.

"Well, that simply isn't possible," Madame Morrible sputtered. "She does not have the talent or the will to succeed in the class and simply will not be worth the time or effort. If that is all, then I will be seeing you Monday."

"No, that isn't it," Elphaba said, surprising herself as well as Madame Morrible. "If you won't allow Miss Galinda to join the seminar, then I won't take the seminar, either."

Madame Morrible stared at her, wide-eyed. "But…but what about the Wizard?" she asked. "Miss Elphaba, you can't give up on your dream!"

"I will be perfectly fine with living without it," Elphaba said calmly. "After all, I have lived without many things, and I seem to have survived. Well, if that is all, I'm sure I will be seeing you around the campus."

She turned to leave.

"Wait," Madame Morrible said wearily. "I will allow Miss Galinda to join the sorcery seminar. I will give her the training wand required tonight. You don't happen to know where she will be, do you?"

"The OzDust Ballroom," Elphaba said without turning around, for fear that Madame Morrible would misinterpret the grin spreading over her face. "Thank you, Madame Morrible. I will be coming to your office with Miss Galinda on Monday, then."

She left Madame Morrible speechless.

2


	8. Chapter 8

"What in Oz do you wear to a party?" Elphaba muttered to herself, looking in her closet at the ten outfits she had brought with her. She knew that she definitely didn't want to wear her Shiz uniform because everyone would know where it came from.

Finally, she just resolved she had worn that day, taking off her jacket and the long-sleeved sweater from underneath it. It was the best outfit that she owned. Everyone had already seen it, but they would just have to deal with it. And if she got made fun of for it, she could live with it. She had lived with it all her life, and besides, Galinda had invited her. No one would dare insult someone Galinda invited.

She went into the bathroom, which had been vacated during the time it had taken her to track down Madame Morrible and speak to her, and took a shower, thoroughly washing her hair and dressing again. She brushed out the black locks and willed them to stay straight, and knew that they would curl as they dried.

Looking in the mirror, she grimaced as she started at her reflection. Her skin was indeed green, no matter how long Elphaba tried to scrub it off. When she was little, she had tried everything, including cleaning oils, bath soaps, lotions, and even an acid that had eaten away at her skin. The acid had been something that her father had suggested to her.

But if one looked past the green skin, Elphaba was beautiful. She herself wouldn't acknowledge such a thing, but her features were obviously of noble heritage, from her strong jaw, smooth skin, and centered nose to her muscled, but feminine, arms, shapely body, and inquisitive brown eyes.

Turning away from the mirror, she cleaned up the mess she had made and exited the bathroom just as Galinda entered the room with Fiyero behind her. Elphaba stared at Fiyero, who had dressed up especially for the occasion in a suit, the jacket hanging open to reveal a stiff button-up shirt and blue and white-striped tie.

"Miss Elphaba," he breathed, staring at her with wide eyes.

Elphaba swallowed with difficulty. "Master Fiyero," she said, slightly inclining her head without looking away from him. "Miss Galinda…"

"Oh, Elphaba, you can drop the formalities," Galinda said with a wave of her hand. "We're friends now, aren't we? You are going to the party, then?"

"Yes," Elphaba said, tearing her eyes away from Fiyero. "Galinda, I was wondering if this outfit was fine for the party. You know, I've never been to one before. No one has ever invited."

Galinda looked shocked. "Really?" she asked. "Well, yes, that outfit is perfectly fine. But since this is your first party, I'm going to have to make sure that it is unforgettable. I promise that I will."

Fiyero shifted and looked uncomfortable, like he wanted to say something. Galinda smiled and linked her arm with his. "Well, we were just coming back to make sure that you were able to make it. The party started about half an hour ago and me and Fiyero were going to take a private walk before we went. We would offer to walk with you, but you know…we would like a little time alone."

"Of course," Elphaba said, nodding quickly and backing away. "Well, I think I'll finish getting ready and set out in fifteen minutes or so. Um…have a good walk and I'll see you at the party."

"Yes, see you at the party," Galinda said, pulling Fiyero down the hall and out of the dormitory room.

Elphaba turned and pulled the hat Galinda had given her out of her satchel as soon as the door shut. The hat seemed symbolic, like it meant something past just an indication of the newfound friendship between the two girls. She disregarded the feeling and pushed it to the back of her mind to think about later. Tucking the hat under her arm, she left the room, heading after Galinda and Fiyero.

2


	9. Chapter 9

Elphaba stood in the shadows just outside the OzDust Ballroom. Every time the door opened, sounds of laughing, talking, and music spilled out along with sparkling light. The OzDust Ballroom was a place where Elphaba knew she didn't belong. Yet, the most popular girl at Shiz had invited her.

She was hesitant to go in. Holding the black hat in her hands, she looked at the door uncertainly. Something told her that this place, and the things that happened here tonight, would change everything. She would no longer be the same.

After another fifteen minutes, she finally made up her mind and placed the hat on her head, reaching out for the handle of the door and opening it. Slipping inside, she kept to the edges of the room where it was dark. She wasn't someone who liked drawing more attention to herself than needed. People dipped, swayed, and twirled in the middle of the dance floor and Elphaba spotted Galinda and Fiyero off to the side of the room, holding a quiet conversation.

Stepping forward to walk over to Galinda, she emerged in the light. Everyone stopped dancing, talking, and laughing to turn and stare at her. Even the music had stopped. Then someone started laughing, and soon enough, everyone was pointing and making fun of her.

It was then that Elphaba realized the hat hadn't been a symbol of friendship, but trickery. Galinda had given it to her to embarrass her. She glanced over at Galinda, who was looking at her with a guilty expression on her face.

Elphaba stepped into the middle of the dance floor, which cleared around her. She took the hat from her head and offered it to Galinda with a cold gaze, and when the blonde didn't move, she firmly put it back on. There were gasps and everyone quieted, watching to see what she would do next.

Taking a deep breath, Elphaba closed her eyes and willed the world away. She was no longer at the OzDust Ballroom, no longer at Shiz University, no longer in Gillikin; she wasn't even in Oz anymore. Listening to a string of music that only she could here, Elphaba willed herself away to her own imaginary world…and started to dance.

She had never danced before, and hadn't planned to dance in her whole life. But this music that she heard, that seemed to come from another realm altogether, filled her with energy and longing and took control of her. Elphaba was no longer Elphaba. Someone or something else was controlling her, breaking through the invisible wall that separated Oz from wherever they came from to get their message across.

Then she felt a tap on her shoulder and the spell was broken. Opening her eyes, Elphaba turned to see Galinda standing behind her.

"May I cut in?" the blonde whispered.

Elphaba nodded and stepped back, gesturing to the area she had just vacated. Galinda stepped forward and attempted to imitate the moves Elphaba had made. She stopped and looked uncertainly at Elphaba, who only nodded and motioned for her to continue.

Galinda started to dance again, and this time, someone played a few notes on the piano. Then a violin and guitar joined in, and Galinda was dancing to a song, perfectly matching Elphaba's dance moves to the beat as a drummer joined in.

And then Galinda grabbed Elphaba by the hands and started to twirl her around in the middle of the dance floor. Fiyero soon joined them and people surrounded them, grinning as they copied Elphaba's dance moves and moved to the music. Elphaba began to have a good time.

The song ended and Galinda pulled Elphaba to the edge of the room. A group of girls ambushed them, trying to pull Galinda back onto the dance floor, but she firmly refused and sent them away. Turning to Elphaba as they stood in a corner, she looked at her with sad eyes.

"I'm so sorry," she said quickly. "I didn't realize…Madame Morrible came in and gave me my training wand. She told me that you had gotten me into the sorcery seminar and was very rude to me, but _you_…you were nice to me. You got me what I wanted. And I just turned you into a joke."

Elphaba shrugged. "It doesn't matter," she said quietly. "Not anymore, at least. You went out there and risked your social life by dancing with me, and that's more than anyone has ever done for me. I know that you really don't want to be seen talking to me, so I'll just leave now…" she said, turning towards the exit.

"No!" Galinda exclaimed, grabbing her by the wrist and turning her around. "I don't want you to leave. Look, I was stupid before by making fun of you and not getting to know you, and you're really a nice person. I want to make up for being a jerk. You can stay with me all night. We can hang out."

"You're sure about this?" Elphaba asked, raising her eyebrows. "You can probably still save your social life if you go out there and start talking about how funny it was to see me walk in with this hat. I don't want to ruin anything for you."

Galinda smiled. "Come on, we can go annoy ShenShen and Pfannee by rubbing it in their faces. They'll be so annoyed!"

"Wait, you don't like ShenShen and Pfannee?" Elphaba asked, confused.

"Of course not," Galinda said, waving her hand nonchalantly. "We just stick together for the popularity. I know they talk about me and spread rumors behind my back, and it really doesn't matter, because they will never be as popular as I am. Especially since I'm dating the cute prince, Fiyero. They're jealous of me."

She waved across the floor to Fiyero, who was talking to a tall, muscled boy about the same age as him. He waved back, grinning, and made his way across the dance floor, the boy trailing behind him.

"Hey Galinda," he said, kissing her gently. "Hello, Miss Elphaba, how are you?"

"Just fine, Master Fiyero, and you?" she responded politely.

"I'm wondering why you walked in with that hat on your head," he said, pointing to said hat. "Everyone knows that that's social suicide."

"Personally, I like it," Elphaba said with a small smile, winking at Galinda. "It fits me, don't you think?"

He squinted an eye and realization dawned on his face. "Yeah, it does!" he exclaimed. "If you look at it just the right way, and in just the right lighting…yeah, I see it now. You look just like a witch!"

"Fiyero!" Galinda yelled, hitting him on the arm. "That was mean! Apologize!"

Rubbing his arm, Fiyero scowled. "I was only joking," he muttered. "Since when did you two become such good friends?"

"Just now," Galinda giggled. "We're roommates, Fiyero. And now we're going to be the best of friends, I just know it. We can go shopping, and give each other makeovers, and talk about dating…"

"Is she always like this?" Elphaba whispered to Fiyero.

He nodded. "Just wait, it gets worse," he whispered back jokingly.

"…and go to the theater, and go shopping some more," she said happily. "Oh, it's going to be so much fun! Elphaba, I can't wait until tomorrow. We're going to have such a grand time. We can go off campus!"

"I don't go shopping," Elphaba said seriously, and Galinda stared at her in shock.

"What do you mean you don't go shopping?" she asked, her voice rising in panic. "Every girl goes shopping, they have to. That's just what they do. If you don't go shopping, then that ruins everything…"

"Galinda, it'll be fine," Fiyero said, cutting her off and kissing her on the top of the head.

"Yeah, Fiyero will go shopping with you," Elphaba said brightly. "There, all of our problems are solved and everyone is appeased. I don't have to go shopping and Galinda gets to have her fun."

"Hey, what about me?" Fiyero complained. "Shopping isn't exactly my favorite hobby, either."

"No, boys are horrible shoppers," Galinda said, rolling her eyes. "They say you look good in everything, even if you look horrible. I need a girl, someone who isn't afraid to tell me what they really think. Elphaba, you fit that description, so you can come shopping with me tomorrow. The whole day. Oh, it'll be just like heaven."

"Yeah, just like heaven," Elphaba muttered to herself. "Except for the fact that I don't believe in heaven, it fits the description perfectly. Hauling around twenty pound shopping bags, gulping down ten extra-caffeinated coffees to stay awake, and having salespeople gawk at you as you walk through the store trying to find something that doesn't clash with your skin."

"What was that?" Galinda asked.

"Nothing," Elphaba said, putting on a fake smile. "I can't wait for our shopping day tomorrow. I was thinking we could stop in a couple bookstores. As long as we're shopping, I might as well get everything I need for my classes on Monday."

"I suppose," Galinda said glumly. "But shopping for class isn't fun unless you're buying a new outfit. Oh, Elphaba, we're going to have to get you party clothes, too…"

"Galinda, why don't we go out on the dance floor?" Fiyero suggested, and Elphaba sighed in relief as he led her away. "I really like this song, and I was wondering if you could dance with me."

Elphaba was left standing awkwardly with the boy Fiyero had been talking to. While he had saved her from the shopping lecture, he had also put her in an even more awkward situation that she didn't want to go through.

"So…" she trailed off. "I think I'm going to get something to drink. Tell Galinda that I'll be over by the punch if she comes looking for me."

The boy nodded wordlessly as Elphaba walked away quickly.

As she reached for a glass of punch, someone knocked her arm away rudely and took the glass she had been about to grab. She opened her mouth to protest, but shut it when she realized she was looking into the smirking faces of ShenShen and Pfannee.

"Hey, artichoke, are you feeling a little steamed?" Pfannee sneered.

"Yeah, I bet you weren't too happy to find out that Galinda had really given that hat to you to trick you," ShenShen laughed, taking a drink from her glass. "Or are you too stupid to realize that yet?"

Elphaba took a different glass and took a sip of the red punch, wrinkling her face up in disgust when she realized that there wasn't just punch in her drink. She threw it in a garbage can and turned to face Pfannee and ShenShen again, opening her mouth to tell them that the punch had been spiked. Then she shut it, grinning. Maybe she would let them figure it out on their own.

"You know, this punch doesn't appeal to me," she said, explaining why she had just thrown her glass away. "Thank you for telling me that Galinda had tried to trick me, but I think even you would realize that by now. If Galinda asks me where I am, can you tell her I'm over there by that wall? Thank you."

She walked over to the wall, leaving Pfannee and ShenShen confused and reaching for more punch. A few minutes later, Galinda hurried up to her with a worried expression on her face.

"Were Pfannee and ShenShen bothering you?" she asked.

"A little, but I've taken care of it," Elphaba said, smiling slightly. "Just don't drink the punch. Someone spiked it. By the end of the night, those girls will have had enough Munchkinland ale to knock a tiger out."

Galinda's mouth dropped open. "I've already had three glasses of the punch," she whispered.

"You'll probably have a small headache tomorrow, then," Elphaba said, shrugging. "You're lucky you didn't drink any more. That's the strongest ale there is, and even one more glass could have gotten you drunk, even as diluted as it is. I suggest you tell Fiyero when you see him."

"Yeah," Galinda said, nodding absentmindedly. "I think I'm going to go back to the dorm room. I don't feel like staying at the party anymore."

Elphaba looked surprised. "Why not? Ten minutes ago, you were going on about how excited you were about going shopping tomorrow and how you wanted me to dance with you, which I was going to refuse, but still."

"There were some people saying some mean stuff about you," Galinda mumbled. "And I didn't want you to hear any of it. But I really want to go. I'll go get Fiyero and he'll take us back to our room. I don't like walking around alone at night."

"If you want to stay, I really don't care about what people say about me," Elphaba said. "Don't leave just because of me."

"No, I'm kind of tired, anyways," Galinda said, yawning. "On second thought, we can just walk back to the room alone. I'll tell someone on the way out to tell Fiyero that I'm leaving. If someone tries to attack us, you can just blow them up."

Elphaba chuckled. "Yes, I'll blow them up," she said.

Then Galinda leaned against her and Elphaba stiffened in surprise. Never before had anyone touched her before in a friendly way. It had always been her father…no, she didn't want to dredge of the memories. Hesitantly putting an arm around Galinda's shoulders, they walked out of the room together, the tall, reclusive green girl supporting the small, socialite blonde.

_**I hope you liked this chapter! I'll be posting Chapter Ten tomorrow afternoon or evening, depending on how fast I get everything done tomorrow. Thank you for reading, and please review! Once again, I'm open to all comments and suggestions and will try to clear anything up if there are any questions. Thank you again!**_

_**ReallyObsessiveWriter**_

5


	10. Chapter 10

"What do you mean you're going to bed?" Galinda whined.

"Just what I said, I'm going to bed," Elphaba replied, opening her closet and pulling out a nightdress. "It's been a long day, and I really would like to get some rest."

"Come on, I never go to sleep right after a party," Galinda complained. "You're such a party pooper. Please, please, please?"

She knelt on her bed, clasping her hands in front of her, and pouted, sticking out her lip as far as it would go and making her eyes as wide and sad as she possibly could. Elphaba sighed, shaking her head, and went into the bathroom to change.

"Elphaba, no one ever goes straight to bed after they go to a party," Galinda said, standing right outside the door. "They sit in their rooms with their friends and talk about stuff. Please, Elphaba, can we just…talk?"

Opening the door, Elphaba looked at Galinda suspiciously. "What do you want to talk about?" she asked.

"We can tell each other secrets!" Galinda squealed, skipping over to her bed and throwing herself down. "I'll go first! Hurry up and sit down!"

Elphaba hesitantly sat down on her bed, facing Galinda. "I'm not so sure about this," she said.

"It'll be fun!" Galinda exclaimed. "Okay, I think I have one. Fiyero and I are going to be married!" She squealed, jumping up and twirling around the room.

"He's already asked you?" Elphaba asked, shocked.

"No, he doesn't know yet," Galinda said, sitting back down on her bed. "But I've already started planning the wedding. The color theme is going to be pink, and you can be the maid of honor…"

"I think I'll just be in the audience," Elphaba interrupted.

"No you won't, you'll be the maid of honor," Galinda said. "Now it's your turn to tell a secret."

Elphaba's eyes widened and she looked away. She had secrets, but none of them would be safe to tell Galinda. After all, they had just become friends less than an hour ago and she didn't fully trust her, yet. "I don't know what to tell," she whispered.

"How about…you tell me what this is?" Galinda asked.

Her hand darted underneath Elphaba's pillow and came out with a small green bottle, dangling it directly in front of her face. Elphaba leaped up to grab it, but Galinda stepped back, leading Elphaba in a chase all over the room.

"Give that back!" she yelled.

"What is it?" Galinda asked, jumping on her bed and bounding back down to the floor.

"I said give it back!" Elphaba yelled, and she snatched it from Galinda, sitting down on her bed and turning her back to the blonde to look at it. "It was my mother's that's all."

She faced Galinda and cradled the bottle in her hands.

"That's not fair," Galinda said. "I told you a really good one."

Elphaba sighed. "Fine," she said. "My father hates me…"

Galinda gasped. "That's horrible!" she exclaimed.

"That's not the secret," Elphaba said, rolling her eyes. "The secret is…he has a good reason to hate me. You see, it's my fault that my sister, Nessarose, is the way she is. If it hadn't been for me being green…it's just my fault."

Galinda wrinkled her nose in confusion. "How is it your fault?"

"You see, when my father found out that my mother was pregnant, he prayed to the Unnamed God so she wouldn't come out green, and he supposedly had a vision of milk flowers. He saw this as a sign to give the flowers to my mother to eat. The thing is…milk flowers aren't meant to be eaten. They made my mother given birth to Nessa early, and she came out with her little legs all tangled…"

She trailed off and bit her lip, shutting her eyes, gathering up her emotions and pushing them to the back of her mind. "And my mother never woke up," Elphaba finished, looking at Galinda. "And neither of those things would have happened if I hadn't been born green, or born at all."

The blonde sat down next to Elphaba and gently placed a hand over the bottle Elphaba was holding. "But it wasn't your fault, it was the milk flower's," she said quietly. "Just because it's your secret doesn't make it true."

"Thanks," Elphaba whispered, giving Galinda a small smile.

They sat there in silence, just enjoying each other's company.

"Oh, Elphaba, look, it's tomorrow!" Galinda exclaimed, standing up and pointing out the doors leading out onto the balcony.

"I think you're a little tired," Elphaba said, also standing up. "Don't you think we should go to bed now?"

"Oh, Elphie…hey, can I call you Elphie?" Galinda asked excitedly.

"Uh…it's a little perky," Elphaba said, making a face.

"And you can call me…Galinda," the blonde said, grinning. "Oh, Elphie, I just got the best idea in all of Oz! Guess what it is! Guess, guess, guess!"

"I don't know," Elphaba said, giving up on getting Galinda to bed.

"Elphie, you're supposed to guess!" Galinda whined. "Oh well, I'll tell you. I've decided that now that we're friends, I'm going to make you my new project."

"This doesn't sound good," Elphaba muttered to herself.

"Come on, Elphie, it's going to be fun!" Galinda said happily, skipping around the room. "Since you're going to be hanging out with me and my friends, I'm going to make you popular. We can start right now!"

Elphaba's mouth dropped open as she stared at Galinda with shock written all over her face. "You're kidding, right?" she asked. "You have to be kidding. No one, and I mean no one, not even the Wizard of Oz, okay _maybe_ the Wizard of Oz, but no one else could make me popular. I mean, look at me!"

"_I_ can make you popular!" Galinda trilled in a high voice. "I'm going to make you popular, and there's nothing you can do about it. I'm going to teach you everything you need to know. Ooh, we can get you a boyfriend!"

At that, Elphaba shot up from her seat. "No boyfriends," she said. "No, no, and no, I refuse. That is going just one step too far."

"We'll work on it, then," Galinda said dismissively. "When we go shopping tomorrow we can buy you a whole new wardrobe. Oz knows you need it if this is the nicest dress you own."

"Galinda, you _really_ don't have to do this," Elphaba said, backing away from Galinda and falling back to sit on her bed. She stowed the green bottle back under her pillow so she could free her hands up to protect herself from Galinda.

"I know, that's why I'm so nice," Galinda sighed. "Let me get my makeup from the bathroom and we can see which shades look good on you."

Elphaba shook her head as Galinda disappeared in the bathroom. "Galinda, my sister has already tried giving me a makeover," she yelled. "Makeup doesn't really work on me, you know. It clashes with my skin!"

"Elphie, I am a makeup expert," Galinda said, appearing in the bathroom door with an armful of beauty products. "If anyone can get your makeup right, it's me. Just give me a chance and I promise I'll make you look beautiful."

"Do I have a choice?" Elphaba whispered, her eyes wide with horror as Galinda dumped everything on her bed and started sorting things out.

"No," Galinda giggled. "Here, we'll try mascara and eye shadow first."

It turned out that Elphaba was right about the makeup. No matter how hard Galinda tried, she couldn't get a single shade of anything to look good on Elphaba. Finally, she just gave up and put away all of her beauty products, quickly applying some eye shadow and lip gloss to herself before prancing out of the bathroom.

"Are we finished now?" Elphaba sighed, tired from trying to resist Galinda's attempts to make her look beautiful.

"I want to try one more thing," Galinda said, pulling a pink flower hair clip from her hair and gently clipping it in Elphaba's hair. "There, pink _does_ go good with green, doesn't it? Oh, Elphie, look at you, you're beautiful."

She held a mirror out to her and Elphaba took it, taking a deep breath and looking at her reflection. Hesitantly, she touched the glass and then her face, not believing that it really was her in the mirror. The hair clip Galinda had given her had made a really big difference. Or was it because she seemed happier?

Smiling, she looked up at Galinda and back at her reflection, and then the smile faded from her face. She would never be beautiful. Her skin was _green_, for Oz sakes! Shoving the mirror back at Galinda, she fled into the bathroom, slamming the door shut and locking it. She slid down the door, putting her head on her knees and silently sobbing. No, she could never be as beautiful as Galinda. She could never be beautiful.

_**Okay, this chapter is longer than the last two. I hope you guys liked it! Please review, I like to hear back from people who read the story. Thank you for reading, and I will be updating again tomorrow!**_

_**ReallyObsessiveWriter**_

3


	11. Chapter 11

_A pendulum swung back and forth, back and forth, and Elphaba watched it anxiously. How many times would it swing? Back and forth, back and forth. How much time would pass? Days, weeks, months, years? Back and forth, back and forth._

_Everything started to swim before her eyes and suddenly she was standing at the edge of a forest, watching as a tornado extended from the dark clouds in the sky and touched down on the ground. She could see a house spinning around and around just on the edge of the tornado, and then there was a scream of pain and agony._

_She was standing in a field of poppies and she could see four figures running towards her in the distance. Turning around, she saw the Emerald City behind her, and looking down, she realized she was standing on a yellow brick road. The figures came into focus and she realized one was a girl about fourteen years old holding a dog, one was a Lion, the third was a man made completely out of tin, and the last was a scarecrow. The Lion and the girl started to slow and then collapsed._

_Galinda was floating above the Emerald City in a bubble. She was dressed in an ornately decorated white and silver ball gown, had a tiara with diamonds set in it on her head, and was holding a wand that was just as tall as she was. There were tears running down her cheeks and Elphaba could tell she was holding back sobs as she addressed a crowd of people below her._

_Winged monkeys were shrieking as they wrenched at the bars of a large cage. Elphaba reached out to lift the latch, but someone grabbed her by the arm and whirled her around. A short man looked up at her and then lifted the latch himself. All of the monkeys flew out, all except for one, which was covered by a worn-out blanket._

_A black, cone-shaped, pointed hat lay in the middle of the floor in the highest room in a tower. There was the sound of flapping wings and a winged monkey landed on the floor, holding a small green bottle in his hands. He held it out as if he were handing it to someone and a pale hand stretched into Elphaba's view, taking the bottle._

_Someone handed her a pair of green glasses and she put them on, looking around to see Galinda standing next to her, also with a pair of glasses on her face. Everything around her was green, including the people. Buildings towered above her, and no one laughed, stared, or pointed._

_Images appeared in the crystal ball that sat on the small table in front of her. A lantern and two people kisses under the shadow of trees, dancing figures in a dimly lit room, and a hair clip with a pink flower on it._

_Glowing words cut through the darkness of the room as Elphaba opened up the heavy, leather-bound book she had been carrying around for so long. Chanting the words, she felt some outside force influencing her to move her hands and arms, drawing invisible pictures in the air above the book._

_The broomstick slowly rose into the air by itself, and Elphaba stared at it, wide-eyed. She rushed forward, grabbing it and feeling power course through her body. Rising into the air, she heard Galinda saying something, but couldn't make out the words. As she flew away, shots were fired at her, and her heart ached, telling her that she had left something behind._

_Standing in a cornfield, watching as a little fourteen-year-old girl walks out of the house that had just landed there. Galinda floats into view in a bubble and suddenly a pair of red ruby shoes appears on the girl's feet._

_Two items lay on the ground on top of a patch of freshly dug up earth. A headstone reading "Galinda Upland" stands in a small patch of sunlight. The two items are suddenly illuminated and Elphaba realizes that one of them is a tiara set in with diamonds and the second is a cone-shaped, pointed black hat._

_Her father is yelling and screaming at her, making her cower beneath him. He brings the pitchfork he is holding in his hands and brings it down repeatedly on her back. She feels the points rip through her dress and her skin, making blood well up in the deep cuts and drip down onto the floor of the barn._

Elphaba woke up with sweat running down her body and the sheets on her bed sticking to her. She couldn't remember going to bed the night before and looked over at Galinda to see that she was sleeping soundly. Remembering the events that had taken place the previous day, she supposed that she had waited until Galinda was asleep to come out of the bathroom and get into bed.

Swinging her legs out of bed and putting her feet on the cold floor, she tried to remember the dream that had woken her up so abruptly. She could remember the part about her father, but everything else seemed to be slipping away like water through her fingers. Giving up, she took a blanket from her bed, wrapping it around her shoulders and walking out onto the balcony.

The sun hadn't yet risen, but Elphaba could see tendrils of its rays sneaking up on the horizon. The grounds were lit by small, foot-level lights that illuminated the path leading between the different buildings. There was a sound from behind her in the room and she turned around to see Galinda standing behind her, a blanket also wrapped around her shoulders.

"How come you're up so early?" Galinda asked, standing next to her and looking out at the grounds.

"Dream woke me up and I couldn't fall back asleep," Elphaba said quietly.

They were both quiet and then Galinda spoke. "It's really beautiful," she whispered so she wouldn't break the spell of the early morning.

"It is," Elphaba whispered back. "I always love waking up before the sun comes up and watching as everything starts up as it rises. It's so peaceful, the most peaceful time of the day, besides sunset."

"So you do this a lot?" Galinda asked.

Elphaba nodded. "Yeah, it's the only time I was ever able to get any time to myself at home because the servants were just getting up and hadn't yet gone outside, my father was still sleeping off the drinking from the night before, and my brother and sister always slept in."

"You have a brother?" Galinda asked.

"His name is Shell, he's the boy who you met on the train," Elphaba said. "He's twelve years old."

"But…I thought your mom…" Galinda trailed off.

"Yeah, _my_ mom died when she gave birth to Nessa," Elphaba said, staring straight in front of her. "Two years later, my father remarried, and two years after that, my step-mother died giving birth to Shell. Of course, it was all blamed on me again and my father vowed never to marry again."

"I'm sorry," Galinda whispered.

Elphaba laughed. "I was never close with my step-mother," she said. "She thought I was evil and blamed me for anything that went wrong any chance she got. Even Nessa disliked her a little bit. I was personally glad to see her go."

Galinda gasped. "Elphaba!"

"What?" she asked. "I'm not going to lie to you."

"But you didn't have to say that," Galinda said, crossing her arms over her chest. "That's just rude. Now she's going to haunt you for the rest of your life."

"I seriously doubt that," Elphaba laughed. "Come on, let's go back inside, you're shivering and I don't want you keeping me from sleeping at night because you caught a cold and you can't stop sneezing."

"Humph," Galinda said, going back in the room with Elphaba following her and closing the doors. "Ooh, we're going shopping today! I can't believe I forgot, hurry up, and get ready! We can eat out at a café for breakfast!"

Sighing, Elphaba threw the blanket she had wrapped around her shoulders on her bed and pulled an outfit from her closet. Rushing into the bathroom so she wouldn't have to wait for two hours for Galinda to get out, she changed and came back out to an already dressed Galinda.

"Wait, how come you're already dressed?" Elphaba asked. "Doesn't it take you at least two hours to get ready?"

Galinda giggled. "Not when we're going shopping," she said. "This way I don't have to worry about ruining my hair and makeup while I'm trying clothes on. And I can try out different kinds of makeup, too. Are you ready? I really want to go. I haven't gone off-campus yet to see what shops they have around here."

"Great," Elphaba muttered, slinging her strap of her satchel over her shoulder. "I thought I was going to have time to myself in the morning, but no, we have a whole day of shopping in front of us."

"What was that?" Galinda asked, already halfway down the hall that led to the parlor. "I didn't quite hear you."

"Nothing," Elphaba said, following her.

They ended up getting breakfast at the cafeteria on school grounds and starting out their day of shopping an hour later because Elphaba kept dragging everything out. Galinda finally caught on and managed to drag Elphaba to the gates and into a carriage headed downtown.

"I don't see why you aren't looking forward to this," Galinda said as Elphaba stared out the window of the carriage dejectedly. "It has to be one of the best parts of coming to Shiz. No people insisting that you have a chaperone when you go out, no one looking over your shoulder and saying that the dress you really like to buy is too low cut, and no one telling you to eat healthier."

"I'm sure I could fulfill all of those things for you," Elphaba said. "And besides, having a bagel with three packages of cream cheese on each side isn't the healthiest thing in Oz. You should have had an apple or something…"

"Elphie, I think I'm just fine without the comments," Galinda interrupted. "Ooh, here we are. Let's go to that little shop over there first and see what they have. I bet there's something there that you'll like. There _has_ to be something there that you'll like."

Three hours, twenty-seven stores, and fifteen bags of purchases later, Galinda still hadn't found a shop that Elphaba liked. The green girl refused to carry any of the shopping bags since not one of the items was hers, so Galinda had hired a driver to take all of her stuff back to Shiz and have it delivered to their dorm room.

"What don't you like about all of these clothes?" Galinda asked, exasperated as Elphaba stood in the front of a small boutique, shaking her head.

"Maybe because every single piece of clothing you've presented to me clashes with my skin," Elphaba said. "I'm green, Galinda. I can't wear red, yellow, orange, or pink. Its difficult to find an exact shade of purple or blue that won't make me look stupid. That's why I choose to wear black."

"Can you at least try something on?" Galinda asked. "I mean, really, it can't hurt, can it?"

"It can make me look like a fool," Elphaba said. "And I am not going to do something that will make me look like a fool."

"This pink top is really cute," Galinda said.

Elphaba looked at Galinda with a 'are you kidding me' look on her face.

"Okay, okay, no pink," Galinda said, putting the shirt back on the rack. "How about this skirt. Its boring and plain, just what you like."

"Just because I clash with everything doesn't mean you can be sarcastic about it," Elphaba snapped, snatching the skirt from Galinda. "I'll try it on, but it doesn't mean that I'm keeping it."

Galinda grinned. "I'll see if I can find anything else," she said. "Call me when you're finished changing, I want to see how it looks on you."

She skipped away into the middle of the store and Elphaba headed back to the dressing rooms, locking herself in one of the stalls and turning her back on the mirror. Galinda might want to see how she looked, but Elphaba already knew. The skirt would make her look just as green and disgusting as before.

Slipping into the skirt, Elphaba opened the door to see Galinda standing there with some more skirts, dresses, and shirts. "I wasn't sure what size you were, so I just got a bunch of different sizes," she explained when Elphaba looked at the amount of clothes she was holding. "Oh, step forward, let me see. Turn around, I want to see the back, too."

Elphaba did as Galinda told her, walking back and forth across the back of the store, turning around, and standing still. "What are you getting out of all of this?" Elphaba asked as she closed the door, finally taking off the skirt and changing into a different one.

"I'm seeing what kind of clothes would look good on you," Galinda said as Elphaba emerged. "You take a long stride, so we can't get anything that is tight fitting on the bottom or you'll rip it, and you have long legs and a shorter torso, so we want to use your legs to your advantage while trying to not make your body look disproportionate."

"Wait, how do you bring proportions into shopping?" Elphaba asked as Galinda motioned for her to turn around.

"What's a proportion?" Galinda asked. "We're not getting that skirt, it doesn't look particularly good on you. Try the black skirt on with the white, button-down blouse, I think they'll look good together."

"You don't know what a proportion is and you use the word disproportionate," Elphaba laughed, trying on the skirt and blouse Galinda had told her to. "Did you ever pay attention in math class? Or English, for that matter?"

"Of course I did," Galinda said. "I just didn't get any of it."

"Then how did you get into Shiz?" Elphaba asked, coming out of the dressing room. "Don't you have to pass the entrance exams?"

"I did pass them," Galinda said, rolling her eyes. "Or part of them. My parents had to pay a lot of money to get me in, though. We had to meet with the School Board a dozen times before they even considered letting me in. Raise your arms above your head, I want to see if the shirt is too short."

"Why would it matter how short the shirt is?" Elphaba asked.

"Because you seem like the sort of person who raises their hand a lot in class," Galinda said. "You can put them down now. And I don't think you want to be giving the professor a clear view of your stomach every time you ask a question."

Elphaba blushed. "Thanks, Galinda," she muttered.

"No problem," the blonde beamed. "Just leave the rest of the clothes in there, they're just different sizes of the same outfits you've already tried on. We can get these and go to a different store. I bet we can get you tons of clothes, now that I know what we're looking for. Here, I'll go pay for them."

"Galinda, they're my clothes, I'm paying," Elphaba said.

"Really, Elphaba, this is a really expensive shop, I'll pay for it," Galinda said.

"Do you think I'm poor?" Elphaba asked. "Because I'm not. If you didn't remember, my father is the Eminent Thropp, and when my grandfather died, he left quite a lot of money for me to use during college. And even more that I was supposed to have been using in the past seven years."

"Then why do you wear those clothes?" Galinda asked as Elphaba came out in her original outfit.

Elphaba sighed. "I've never really been focused on how I look," she said. "I don't worry about first impressions, because other people's first impressions aren't going to be altered by what I wear. The first thing they're going to see is the color of my skin and they aren't going to even try looking past that."

"I think they would," Galinda said. "And your skin isn't bad. It's beautiful."

Elphaba snorted. "You don't have to lie to me, Galinda," she said. "Now let's go pay for this stuff. I saw a bookstore down the street that I wanted to pop into really quick. We still need to buy our textbooks for Monday."

Galinda sighed and followed her to the cash register. "I guess," she muttered.

After Elphaba paid for her clothes, they walked out of the shop and towards the bookstore Elphaba had been talking about. Walking in, the man at the counter looked up briefly, gave them a small smile, and went back to writing out figures on a slip of paper. "If you need anything, just ask," he said in a monotone voice.

"Thank you," Elphaba whispered politely. "Come on, Galinda, the textbooks are back here. Let me see your schedule and I'll help you find the books you need. I have no idea why they didn't mail these to us so we could get them earlier, but we'll just have to deal with it."

She compared their schedules and laughed to herself.

"What's so funny?" Galinda asked.

"We have the exact same schedules," Elphaba said, showing Galinda the schedules. "That means it will be easier to find the books, because we only have to find half as many as we usually would have."

Scanning the shelves, she found all of the books easily and piled them in Galinda's arms. "There, I just want to look for a couple more things really fast and then we can buy these and get going," Elphaba said.

"Elphie," Galinda moaned. "These are really heavy."

"Then set them down," Elphaba said. "Make sure nobody takes, them, though, a couple of those were the last ones they had, and I don't want to have to go into five more bookshops looking for the same books when they had all of the ones we needed right here."

"Just hurry up," Galinda moaned. "This is boring."

"Imagine being dragged around to thirty different bookstores all day against your will," Elphaba said.

"That would be torture!" Galinda exclaimed.

"Well, now you know how I feel," Elphaba said, scanning the shelves. She found several rare books and quickly, but carefully, took them off the shelf, tucking them under her arm. When she was satisfied with what she had found, she went back to Galinda, who had picked an Ozian Girl magazine, and took the textbooks, going up to the counter and sorting them out in piles. The shorter stack was Galinda's.

"Galinda, I'm paying now, I would suggest you came and paid for your books, too," Elphaba said.

The blonde came up to the counter with three magazines in hand, all based on fashion. Elphaba sighed and rolled her eyes, paying for her books and putting as many as she could in her satchel, putting the rest in her shopping bag. Galinda also paid for her books and for them to be delivered back to her room.

"Why don't you just have them delivered to the room, too?" Galinda asked as they walked out of the shop.

"Just because I have money doesn't mean I'm going to spend it every chance I get," Elphaba said. "I would prefer to save as much I can just in case something happens. What's that shop there? Come on, let's go check it out."

"Elphieeee," Galinda moaned.

Elphaba looked at Galinda. "Isn't this what going shopping is all about?" she asked. "Finding cool new shops and seeing what's in them? It's only going to take a minute, and then we can go back and eat at that restaurant you spotted by that yellow shop today."

"The shop was called Sunshine Girls," Galinda snapped. "And fine, we'll go in, but we're leaving right away if I don't like it."

"Fine," Elphaba shrugged.

They headed towards the shop Elphaba pointed out, a small little building crammed between two designer stores. Opening the door, a bell jangled and she sneezed because of all of the dust her shoes kicked up. Holding a sleeve over her face, she looked around to see the shop was completely empty except for an old rocking chair in the corner and a counter covered in papers and broken pens.

"I don't think there's anyone here," she said. "Hello? Is anyone here?"

The door slammed closed and both Galinda and Elphaba jumped in surprise.

"I've been waiting for you two," a voice said.

They turned around to see an old woman bent over with age standing behind the counter. Her hair was gray and matted, as if it hadn't been washed for a long time. She smiled, revealing that she only had three yellowing teeth.

"Galinda Upland and Elphaba Thropp, you're late."

_**Just thought I'd leave you guys hanging there. If I can roll out another chapter tonight, I might post it later. If not, you're going to have to wait until tomorrow. Thank you to everyone who has read my story, I really appreciate it. Please review, I'm always open to suggestions, comments, and constructive criticism. Thank you again and until next chapter!**_

_**ReallyObsessiveWriter**_

7


	12. Chapter 12

"H-how do you know our names?" Galinda asked.

"Dearie, Mother Yackle isn't stupid," the old woman said. "Greenie is Elphaba and Blondie is Galinda."

"Hey!" Galinda protested.

"It wasn't meant as an insult," Yackle said, hobbling out from behind the counter. "Now, why don't you follow Mother Yackle to the back room so she can tell your fortunes with palm reading and the crystal ball?"

"My father would kill me if he knew I was here," Elphaba said. Then she grinned. "I'm definitely doing it."

"Elphaba, wait," Galinda said, grabbing her arm and pulling her back. "You have no idea who this woman is or what she wants. I think we should leave. What if she tries to kill us or rob us?"

"Galinda, really?" Elphaba laughed. "That woman couldn't pull a knife on us if her life depended on it. Besides, I have my magic to protect me. I guarantee if I get upset, something bad will happen to her or we'll go shooting out the door. Both options will benefit us."

"I really don't like this," Galinda said. "She scares me. How did she know our names? Elphaba, I really want to go."

Elphaba sighed. "Galinda, I promise that if you do this with me, I'll let you do whatever you want to do for the rest of the day. I want to see if this woman is a genuine fortuneteller or if she's just trying to get some business."

She could see Galinda struggling with the options. On one hand, she would have to stay here and let this crazy old woman tell her fortune, but she would be able to go shopping for the rest of the day. On the other hand, she would be able to leave, but Elphaba would be fighting her tooth and nail every time she wanted to do something.

"Fine," she sighed. "But after this, I don't want any complaining about going shopping, and you'll let me buy as many outfits for you as I want."

"Okay, let's go," Elphaba, grabbing Galinda's hand and pulling her after Yackle into the back room.

The back room had been painted white. Yackle sat in an old, wooden chair behind a small, circular table. On top of the table were a small wooden stand and a large crystal ball. Two wooden chairs had been pushed up against the wall and Elphaba dragged them towards the table, waiting for Galinda to sit down before she did.

"Which one wants to go first?" Yackle asked. "Greenie or Blondie?"

Galinda looked terrified, so Elphaba spoke up. "I'll go first," she said.

"Let me see your hand then," Yackle said, and Elphaba held out her left hand, palm facing up. "Left-handed, that is not a good sign, dearie. You'll go through many trials and tribulations throughout your life."

Elphaba rolled her eyes and snorted, grinning at Galinda to show her that she was fine. Galinda didn't look so sure. She was staring at Yackle, who had her eyes closed and whose fingers were dancing over Elphaba's hand.

Five minutes passed, and then ten, and fifteen. Elphaba began to grow impatient and Galinda looked even more worried. She was about to pull her hand away when Yackle's eyes snapped open and she let go of Elphaba's hand, which dropped down to her lap.

"Interesting," Yackle murmured. "Very interesting. I've never seen anything like it. Do you mind if I have you gaze into my crystal ball before I tell you everything I learned?"

"Okay?" Elphaba said, a little hesitantly. She had expected Yackle to be a fake, the person who asks you questions and tells your future by giving you want you want. But she hadn't asked a single question so far and it didn't look like she was going to be asking any questions. "Just…tell me what to do."

"Clear your mind," Yackle said. "Push everything out. Every thought, emotion, and preference. Throw yourself out of your mind."

Elphaba did as she said, struggling at first because it was so hard for her. But as she progressed, it gradually became easier. Steadily, she was backing away from herself, looking at herself in a whole new perspective. She wasn't Elphaba anymore. She was someone…or something else. A whole different person.

"Now I want you to keep that mindset and stare into the crystal ball."

She did as directed, staring into the…_watery_ depths of the crystal ball? This was not how it was supposed to be. Everything she had read, all of the theories about telling the future had said foggy crystal balls. No, wait, something was moving.

The pendulum. It was the pendulum from her dream that morning. It swung back and forth, back and forth, back and forth. Time was passing, and things were happening. Things that she wanted to prevent, but couldn't.

And that hat again. The hat Galinda had given her. It grew bigger and bigger and bigger, enveloping her in darkness, and she was standing in…nothing. There was nothing there, just complete and total darkness.

Then a scream and billowing smoke. Sobs and yells, someone crying out her name. What in Oz was happening? She was in darkness again, but it was musty, and she could faintly make out the walls around her. She was in a tunnel. Water dripped around her and a drop landed on her face.

Suddenly she was sitting back in the back room of the old ramshackle shop. Yackle was staring at her with…hunger? Confusion? Interest? _Fear?_ And Galinda was cowering in her chair, her eyes wide and tears running down her face.

"Wh-what w-was th-that?" Elphaba asked in a shaky voice, pointing at the crystal ball. "What have you done to me? How did you do it?"

"_I_ didn't do it, dearie," Yackle said, leaning forward. "_You_ did. Elphaba, you are a talented young woman, more powerful than any witch before you with the exception of Kumbricia herself, and even then…who knows?"

Yackle seemed to be normal, talking normal. The crazy woman who had talked to them before seemed to have disappeared. "Your future, like any witches future, is very hard to see. Unless you see it for yourself. And even then, the signs are very hard to decipher."

"So you can't tell me what any of that meant?" Elphaba asked incredulously. "You just asked me to look in the crystal ball, and you can't tell me a single thing about my future?"

"I can, but I have to warn you, nothing is certain, especially this early on," Yackle said. "It's very hard to tell the immediate future from your palm because it can easily be changed, whereas events in the far future can be the result of many different things happening. And let me warn you, you can always change things. So don't count on this as definite, because it isn't."

Elphaba nodded and stared at Yackle, waiting for her to begin talking about her future. Finally, the old woman started talking.

"As I said before, you will go through many trials and tribulations, no matter what path you choose," Yackle started. "Each one is marked with disaster, but only one has a happy ending. Be sure to trust yourself, don't give in to temptation."

"Temptation?" Elphaba whispered to herself.

"The rest is all bits and pieces. I see your friend there. She will play an integral part in your future. A boy with blue diamonds. A broomstick and winged monkeys. I don't know where that came from. This is a marriage that may take place, but that is uncertain. For whom, I don't know. Children…I cannot say how many or when, but children play a part in your future. I do not even know if they are yours. Red ruby slippers and a girl in a wheelchair. Nessarose, I believe."

Then silence. Yackle said nothing more and motioned for Elphaba to scoot back, which she did, the wooden legs of her chair scraping against the floor. The old woman gestured to Galinda, meaning for her to come forward, but the blonde just sat there, a look of shock and horror on her face.

Yackle glared at Elphaba and she sighed. "Galinda, come one, I promise it isn't going to hurt you," she said. Galinda shook her head stubbornly. "At least let her read you palm. Please, Galinda, it'll be worth it. I promise."

"Fine, but you owe me big time," Galinda grumbled.

"Yeah, you're the one getting your fortune told, dearie," Yackle snorted, and then she tilted her head thoughtfully. "On second thought, you do owe her, Elphaba."

"What?" Elphaba exclaimed. "What did I do?"

"You'll see," Yackle said, grinning. "Now dearie, put out your hand. Yes, that's it. Everything is going to be perfectly fine. Mother Yackle won't hurt you."

She closed her eyes and her fingers danced over Galinda's right palm. Only ten minutes passed before she opened her eyes and dropped Galinda's hand. "Well, you've gotten yourself in a lot of trouble, haven't you?" she asked.

Galinda shrugged, looking down at her lap. "I guess so," she whispered.

"You know what I'm talking about?" Yackle asked.

"I think so," Galinda said quietly.

"Then I can't help you anymore in that area. It isn't my job. You're going to have to solve that problem yourself. Now, what to do about everything else. Both of your futures are very closely tied with each other, more than I originally realized. Be careful, both of you."

"What are you talking about with Galinda getting herself in trouble?" Elphaba asked.

"That is not for me to say," Yackle answered. "If she wants to tell you, she'll tell you. It's not my job to tell you what she's done, but what you might do. Now let me finish or I'll have to do it all over again."

She stared at Galinda thoughtfully. "Would you mind gazing into the crystal ball for me?" she asked gently. "It would only be for a few minutes and you could look away whenever you want. When you look in, I'll be able to see what you see and more. It will help me immensely."

Galinda glanced at Elphaba hesitantly. "It's your choice," Elphaba said, shrugging. "I only asked you to let her read your palm. I don't care much either way."

"Okay," Galinda said firmly. "I'll do it."

Yackle stared into the crystal ball. "Now relax your mind and clear everything away. Forget all of your worries, thoughts, and emotions. Stare at a blank page. Now look into the crystal ball."

They both stared into the crystal ball for a minute, and then five, and ten, and fifteen, and it extended out to twenty. Elphaba started to worry as it stretched on and on and on. Neither Galinda nor Yackle betrayed any emotion on their faces.

And then Galinda threw herself back, tumbling out of the chair and to the floor. Elphaba dived after her, throwing the chair out of the way and kneeling by her side. Galinda was sobbing, tears running down her face and attempts at speaking coming out of her mouth.

"Galinda, calm down, it's going to be alright," Elphaba said as Galinda snuggled into her. She stiffened for a moment, and then remembering what had just happened, she threw her arms around the distraught girl and pulled her into a comforting hug. "It's going to be fine. I'm here for you. Nothing's going to happen."

"Don't lie," Yackle said, making Elphaba look up at her. "Don't tell her things you know aren't true. It will only hurt both of you."

"You!" Elphaba said. "You're the cause of this! This is your fault!"

"No, dearie, it's _your_ fault," Yackle said, leaning forward. "_You're_ the one who had her come in here. _You're_ the one who begged her to get her palm read."

"You knew what would happen!" Elphaba yelled. "You knew! I can see it on your face! And you didn't tell me! Isn't that what you're supposed to be doing, telling our futures?"

"She needed to know," Yackle said.

"What did she need to know so badly that she fell out of her chair and is now sobbing in my arms?" Elphaba demanded.

"It is not my place to tell you her future," Yackle said.

"Blah dee blah dee blah," Elphaba said. "And you're going to go on to tell me that it's her place to tell me and she'll only tell me if she wants to. Well, don't expect me to come back here, because I'm not. Ever."

"Take the crystal ball with you," Yackle said.

Elphaba snorted. "Why? So that there can be a constant reminder of what happened here in our dorm room? I don't think so."

"You're going to need it," Yackle said. "Please, just take it."

"Fine," Elphaba snapped, carefully standing up and righting the chair she had thrown across the room. She carefully sat Galinda down on it, looking into her eyes worriedly. "Are you going to be okay?" she asked.

"I think so," Galinda whispered through her tears.

"How about you go wait in the front room for me and I'll be right out," Elphaba said, and Galinda nodded, standing up and walking out of the room.

"You care for her," Yackle observed quietly.

"She's my friend," Elphaba said, as if that justified everything.

"No, but you _care_ for her," Yackle said. "And you've known her for…what, one day? Be careful of who you make friends with. Sometimes they'll circle around and stab you in the back."

"And what's that supposed to mean?" Elphaba snarled. "Yeah, she made me the laughingstock of all of Shiz University, but she risked her social life to become friends with me. I don't think you should stick your nose into this. You've ruined enough as it is." She paused. "What _did_ Galinda see in the crystal ball, anyways?"

Yackle sighed. "Always curious, aren't you?" she asked. "That will also come around and stab you in the back one day."

"If you're not going to give me a straight answer, don't answer me at all," Elphaba said.

"She saw death," Yackle said. "There, I said it, are you happy? She saw people she loves die. And when someone sees that, and knows that they're going to see it again, they usually get upset. Now take the crystal ball and go tend to your friend. It's going to take a while for her to calm down, and a lot of shopping and food."

"I hate you," Elphaba said as Yackle somehow put the crystal ball and the stand inside a small box the size of the palm of her hand.

"It's not the first time someone has said that to Mother Yackle, dearie," the old woman cackled. "And it won't be the last time. Now good luck, and if you need anything, you know where to find me!"

"Not like I'll ever want to," Elphaba muttered to herself, tucking the box away in her satchel and going out to the front room to join Galinda. "Come on, Galinda, let's get out of here. You were right, this _was_ a bad idea."

_**You guys are lucky. I couldn't wait to post this chapter. I just have this urge that's telling me to do it. So enjoy, and don't hesitate to review! In fact, I encourage reviewing! A lot! (hint, hint)**_

_**ReallyObsessiveWriter**_

5


	13. Chapter 13

Elphaba and Galinda walked down the street as fast as they could, away from Yackle and from the fortunes they had seen and heard. They stopped two blocks away where they sat down on a bench in silence.

"Can we just go back to the room?" Galinda asked after a few minutes.

"Yeah," Elphaba whispered.

They waved down a carriage and were both quiet on the ride back to Shiz University. When they got back to their room, Galinda immediately set to unpacking all of the shopping bags that had been delivered to their room, but she wasn't as excited as she had been earlier that day.

"I'm sorry," Elphaba said after a few moments, and Galinda turned to look at her. "This is my entire fault. You were so excited to go shopping last night and this morning, and I ruined it by dragging you into that shop. I should have listened to you."

"It's okay," Galinda said. "You weren't that happy about shopping, anyways. I'll go some other time with Pfannee and ShenShen or Milla. I shouldn't have dragged you along when you didn't want to go."

"If you want, we can go together some other time," Elphaba said. "I really don't mind, as long as we can take breaks."

Galinda smiled. "I would like that," she said quietly.

Elphaba sat down on her bed. "What _did_ you see in that crystal ball, anyways?" she asked.

The blonde hesitated. "I…uh, I saw…it's hard to explain."

"You don't have to tell me if you don't want to," Elphaba said, pulling one of her new textbooks out of her satchel and flipping it open. Biology. "You have the right to keep it to yourself. I'm not going to force you to tell me."

"It's just…is all of that stuff really going to come true?" Galinda asked, hesitantly sitting on Elphaba's bed with a foot of space between them.

Elphaba looked up at Galinda, her eyebrows meeting in the middle of her forehead to indicate that she was thinking. "I don't know," she said slowly. "I suppose it's possible. I mean, almost anything is possible, but there is a very small chance that those things could actually happen."

"How big are the chances that my parents, Fiyero, Nessa, and you would all…um, would all…die in the same year?" she whispered.

"Well, uh, pretty small, I suppose," Elphaba said, caught off guard by the question. "Is…is that what you saw?"

Galinda nodded, looking down at her lap. "And the whole time…the whole time that…that _woman_ was talking to me, narrating it all. She was making it seem worse and worse, and that it was all my fault. Then she told me I was the only one who could prevent it, but she couldn't tell me what to do to prevent it."

"Do you want to know what I think you should do?" Elphaba asked seriously.

The blonde nodded, looking at Elphaba attentively.

"Forget you even looked into that crystal ball," Elphaba finished. "It obviously is doing you more harm than good, and it won't hurt you any to forget all of it. That is, if you can. I know I can't. But don't dwell on it. All that stuff is going to happen far in the future if it's going to happen at all. By that time, we'll both know where our lives are headed and we'll be able to make smart decisions to stop bad things from happening." She paused. "Hopefully we'll be able to make smart decisions."

"But…" Galinda started.

"No, Galinda, I think Yackle is just a crazy old woman who likes scaring college girls so they can't sleep at night," Elphaba said. "And she did it to us because we're such an odd pair of…of..."

"Friends?" Galinda suggested.

Elphaba hesitated. "Yes…_friends_," she said, rolling the word around experimentally. "Because we're such an odd pair of _friends_."

She bit her lip and smiled faintly, looking down at her lap and then up at Galinda again. "Are we really friends?" she whispered.

"I…I think so," Galinda said. She extended her hand, placing it gently over Elphaba's hand. "Yes, we're friends."

Elphaba grinned and grasped Galinda's hands. "Friends."

_**I'm sorry that this chapter was so short. It was very difficult to write because I was fighting writer's block every step of the way. It was like someone had dropped the Great Wall of China in front of me and I was trying to chisel away at it with a spoon. I managed to chip away some of the stone and write something out. If anything pops into my mind later tonight, I'll see if I can write another chapter out and post it. Thank you for reading my story, and thank you to everyone who has reviewed so far, please continue to do so!**_

_**ReallyObsessiveWriter**_

2


	14. Chapter 14

Unable to sleep, Elphaba stayed up with her lamp on her nightstand on and her biology textbook open on her pillow. A storm raged outside, lightning flashing across the sky and thunder rumbling a few seconds later. Galinda was sprawled out on her bed, snoring softly, half covered by her pink sheets and blankets.

"This is not helping!" Elphaba growled, slamming the textbook shut. Galinda started in her sleep, but turned over without waking up and continued to snore. "Lucky, she can actually go to sleep."

After sitting on her bed for a few minutes, staring at the rain pattering on the doors leading out to the balcony, she got out of bed, changed back into the clothes she had been wearing earlier that day, and put on her rain cloak. If she couldn't sleep, she was going to go to the library. She remembered to write a quick note to Galinda, just in case she woke up, and then grabbed her satchel, heading out the door.

Pulling her hood up over her head and down in front of her face, Elphaba grasped her cloak close to herself and ventured out into the rain. Half walking, half running, she made it to the library in less than ten minutes and was shaking out her cloak in the small cloak room before entering the library itself.

The only person she could see that was there was the man standing behind the counter, nodding off as he sat there with a large book laying open in front of him. Elphaba decided not to wake him just in case it was too close to closing hours for him to let her him, so she quietly snuck off into the depths of the maze of bookshelves.

Twenty minutes later, she had an armload of books and was quite satisfied with what she had found. Since the images from her dream that morning combined with Yackle's prophecy and the images from the crystal ball had bothered her so much, she had decided to take matters into her own hands and read up on fate, prophecy, and the art of fortune-telling.

Waking up the man, who jumped almost two feet into the air when he saw Elphaba, she checked out the books and, after tightly wrapping her cloak around herself and making sure the books wouldn't be ruined, she headed back to her room. Thankfully, when she got back, Galinda was still asleep and there were no signs that she had woken up while she had been out.

Cracking open one of the books, Elphaba started on a long night of research.

She woke up on top of a particularly musty tome late that night. Lightning flashed across the sky outside, illuminating everything in the room. Galinda was oblivious to the storm, snoring softly in her bed.

Elphaba stared down at the book, slamming it shut in exasperation. Nothing she had read had given her any useful information at all. All those signs Yackle had given her, and the signs she could remember from her dream, obviously didn't want to be deciphered at the moment.

Sitting on her bed, she thought about the signs she could remember. Galinda was in her future, Yackle had said. But that was obvious. They were roommates. And a boy with blue diamonds…Fiyero. Or maybe some other student from the Vinkus? How many boys had blue diamond tattoos? She would have to remember to ask him.

A broomstick and winged monkeys, this one was a bit more difficult. Never before had she heard of monkeys with wings, and she had no idea why Yackle was talking about a broom. She most certainly did _not_ plan on becoming a janitor later on in her life. But she had a feeling the broom held a deeper meaning, or did something beyond sweeping dust from the corners of a room.

Marriage and children were the next part, and Elphaba knew for certain that neither one of those things would happen. No one would want a relationship with her, the artichoke, the green bean. Boys laughed at her and threw spitballs at her, and that's as far as the affection went. And children…they ran away screaming for their mothers.

The last two were a bit more obvious, if not confusing. Nessa was the wheelchair bound girl, as Yackle had said, and she had jeweled shoes, but they weren't red. They were silver. Perhaps Yackle had gotten her colors mixed up.

And then there was the image in the crystal ball that had also haunted her in her dream. The pendulum swinging back and forth. Elphaba knew that it symbolized time was passing, but for what? Was it trying to tell her that she had a certain amount of time to do something, and if so, what did she have to do?

Slowly, her eyelids began to droop, and her head nodded forward. She just couldn't stay awake. Galinda turned over in her bed, and Elphaba began to dream, once again, of winged monkeys, ruby slippers, and a pendulum, with time slipping away too fast.

_**I'm sorry this chapter is so short. I really am trying to update as much as possible, but it's getting really hard. I've had a lot of work to do recently, and I've been deprived of a lot of sleep, so I've been dozing off in the middle of the day, which is NOT good. Thank you to all of my readers and reviewers, and please continue to review. I am open to ALL suggestions, comments, ideas, and positive criticism. Thank you again!**_

_**ReallyObsessiveWriter**_

2


	15. Chapter 15

Elphaba woke up before the sunrise again the next morning. She went out to watch the first morning rays light up the campus, and then went inside to change. Deciding to please Galinda, she put on one of the outfits she had gotten the day before and looked at herself in the mirror. To herself, she just looked stupid, but the blissful blonde who was still sleeping had said that it looked good on her.

She sat on her bed for the next three hours, flipping through textbooks and sticking notes in where one chapter ended and a new chapter began. Galinda began to stir and Elphaba looked up, a smile playing on her lips when the blonde just rolled over again and pulled the covers over her head.

"Galinda!" she called quietly. "Galinda, it's the first day of classes and you only have five minutes to get ready before our meeting with Madame Morrible."

The girl shot out of bed and towards her closet, picking out a dress and disappearing into the bathroom to change. She came out thirty seconds later; hair curled, makeup neatly applied, and dress in order. Elphaba gaped at her.

"Well, come on," Galinda said, picking up a purse that matched perfectly with her outfit along with slipping into a pair of matching shoes. "You don't want to be late to Madame Morrible's meeting, do you?"

"I was joking," Elphaba said.

Galinda stared at her for a moment, and then Elphaba burst out laughing, a grin spreading over her face as she doubled over. She suddenly felt a slap on the back of her head and stopped laughing immediately, scrambling away from Galinda with wide eyes.

"I'm sorry," she whispered fearfully. "I didn't mean to make you angry. I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry."

The blonde reached out to her, a look of surprise on her face, but Elphaba scrambled away, falling off the end of the bed and landing in a heap on the floor. She bolted upright, pressing herself against the wall, as if she wanted to melt right into it.

"Elphaba, what's wrong?" Galinda asked with a confused expression on her face. "I was just joking around; I didn't mean to hurt you. Did I really slap you that hard?"

"You…you mean you're not mad at me?" Elphaba asked.

Galinda shook her head. "No…at least I'm not _very_ mad at you. I was joking around when I slapped you. I'm sorry. I didn't think you'd take it that way."

Carefully sitting down on her bed, Elphaba kept a wary eye on Galinda. "So…you weren't trying to punish me?" she asked.

"No," Galinda said slowly. "What's going on, Elphaba? Why are you acting like this? Did something happen to you? Are you hurt?"

"I…I…I don't like to talk about it," Elphaba muttered, looking away.

"Elphie, you know you can trust me, right?" Galinda asked quietly, gently sitting down on the edge of her bed. "I mean, I was really mean before, but I promise I won't tell anyone anything you don't want me to. I want to help."

"It's not something I can just _tell_ you," Elphaba said. "I…it's harder than that, more weighty. I don't want you to get upset if I say anything."

"Well, I just want to ask you something," Galinda said. "What happens when this situation happens again, except outside of this room with someone else? What if someone accidentally bumps you or hits you on the back? How will you respond then?"

"I'll hit them back," Elphaba said seriously. "Besides, people don't like me. They're going to be staying as far away from me as possible. And it's easier to hide things around more people than it is to hide things from just one person."

"So you're _hiding_ something," Galinda mused.

"Please, Galinda, I don't want to talk about it?" Elphaba sighed.

"Fine," Galinda said. "But can I ask you one more question?"

Elphaba shrugged. "Ask away. It doesn't mean that I'm going to answer it."

"What's this scar from right here?" tracing a scar on Elphaba's skin that was exposed by the shirt she was wearing. It ran from the left side of her neck down to disappear under her shirt. Elphaba clapped a hand over it and stared at Galinda, wide-eyed.

"Nothing," Elphaba whispered. "It's from nothing, anywhere. I'm fine, I'm okay, I think I'll go take a shower really quick…"

Galinda grabbed her by the wrist as she stood up to go into the bathroom and she shuttered, yanking away from Galinda and collapsing in a sobbing heap on the floor. This totally surprised Galinda. Elphaba had never shown any emotion, only a small sense of fear when they had gone to see Yackle the day before. She knelt next to the green girl, gently placing a hand on her back.

"I'm sorry," she whispered. "I shouldn't have been so nosy. This is my fault. You don't have to tell me. You shouldn't tell me."

"No," Elphaba said, looking up with tears streaming down her face. "You…you deserve to know. I should tell…someone, at least."

She took a deep breath. "My father used to beat me when I was a child," she said. "And that scar…it's from when he had doctors cut me open to see if I was green on the inside…without painkillers and me still conscious."

Galinda gasped in surprise and horror. "That's horrible," she whispered. "But…why?"

Elphaba looked away. "You see, it started when my mother died," she whispered. "My sister, Nessa, had been born paralyzed, as I told you before, and my father was angry, and wanted to blame _someone_, and the immediate choice was me. That was the first time he hit me. It wasn't that bad, compared to later times…" she trailed off.

"But it was raining that day," she continued, looking out the window to see the sun lighting up the campus. "So he always remembers when it rains. And when it rains, he gets angry and sad, and tries to drink it all away, except the alcohol only makes it worse. And when he's drunk, he comes after me, and…well, you know. It didn't help that we lived in Quadling Country for a few years. My father preached in bars, and more often than not, got drunk with the Quadlings, so…my days there weren't exactly the best."

"He had doctors cut you open _just_ to see if you were green?" Galinda asked, an expression of horror on her face. "And you didn't have any painkillers and you were still conscious?"

Elphaba shrugged. "I can't remember much of it," she said quietly. "Just the pain mostly, and men in white coats with knives. That's why I haven't gone to a doctor's office since. I don't trust them. My father might be paying them to find a 'cure' for my skin abnormality. And it most likely won't be the most pleasant experience for me."

"Does your sister know about this?" Galinda asked.

"No!" Elphaba yelled, surprising the blonde. "And she can't _ever_ know about it, ever! Or my brother! I don't want them to be in any danger from my father, either, although I have a feeling Shell will be punished a little more severely since Nessa and I are at college now…"

"Elphaba, did you ever think of…telling anyone else?" Galinda asked timidly.

"No, no, no, no, no," Elphaba said, shaking her head and taking Galinda by the shoulders. "No one can ever know about this, ever. It would ruin everything. Once I graduate from college, I'll receive the title of Eminent Thropp, and my father can go back to his preaching in Quadling Country…without Nessa or Shell going with him. No one is ever going to be hurt by him again. Ever…ever…ever…"

She broke down, sobbing again, and Galinda put her arms around her, holding her, comforting her. At first, Elphaba flinched because she hadn't been touched like this as a child when she was upset, but she gradually melted into the small blonde, releasing the emotion she had kept inside for the past eighteen years.

_**Thank you to all of my readers and reviewers, and I hope you like this chapter. Please tell me what you think about it and if you think anything needs to be changed. Once again, I am open to all suggestions, comments, ideas, and positive criticism, so please review. Thank you again!**_

_**ReallyObsessiveWriter**_

3


	16. Chapter 16

_**I'm sorry that I haven't updated in so long. I had the worst case of writer's block on this story than I've ever had before. I just got stuck. Well, here's the next chapter. I'm sorry it's so short. Enjoy!**_

"Hey, Galinda, it's the first day of classes," Elphaba said, shaking the blonde gently to wake her up. "You have an hour and a half to get ready before Madame Morrible's seminar, and I suggest that you aren't late for that."

"Don't wanna get up," Galinda moaned, turning over and pulling her blankets over her head.

"Galinda, if you miss Madame Morrible's seminar, she probably won't let you come back," Elphaba said. "I really think that you should get up now."

"Fine," Galinda said, throwing back the covers. "But I get the shower first."

"I already showered and everything, so you can have the bathroom until we go to class," Elphaba said, sitting down on her bed and grabbing a book from her nightstand. "There should be plenty of hot water left, too. I took a short shower."

"Thank you," Galinda said softly. "Sorry for being so rude to you."

"Hey, you aren't a morning person," Elphaba said, looking up and shrugging. "It's no big deal, don't dwell on it. Just go get ready. If we have time, we can go down to the cafeteria and get breakfast, or maybe the café."

"Yeah, I'll be out in half an hour," Galinda said, running into her closet and getting a dress, locking herself in the bathroom.

Thirty minutes passed and Elphaba looked up to see Galinda coming out of the bathroom, completely ready. "You know we don't have class for another hour, right?" she asked.

"Yes, but I wanted to talk to you about last night," Galinda said.

"Oh," Elphaba said, glancing down at her lap. After she had calmed down, she had gone into the bathroom, and when she had come out, Galinda was already asleep.

"Elphaba, I want you to know that I would never tell anyone any of your secrets," Galinda said, sitting down next to her. "I know I was really mean to you before, but… I think that we could be really good friends if we tried to. You're already the best friend I've ever had. And I trust you."

"It's very hard for me to trust people," Elphaba whispered. "I know I should be able to trust you, but I just _can't_. After everything that's ever happened in my life, it's difficult to comprehend that there's someone who will listen to me and not complain all the time."

"I'll always listen to you," Galinda said.

"So you think we could be… really good friends?" Elphaba asked.

Galinda smiled and took her hand in her own. "The best of friends."

_**Once again, I'm sorry that I didn't update for so long and I'm sorry that the chapter is so short. I'll be sure to update regularly now. The next chapter should be up in the next week, although I'll try to get it up tomorrow. I can't make any promises on tomorrow, though. Thank you to everyone who's stuck with this story even though it's been so long, and I would really appreciate it if you reviewed!**_

_**ReallyObsessiveWriter**_

1


	17. Chapter 17

_**Sorry for the short chapter, but I hope you enjoy!**_

Galinda and Elphaba headed to Madame Morrible's office and waited outside until the Headmistress opened her office door and called the girls inside. She looked disapprovingly at the two of them for a few minutes and finally pulled two books off a shelf, one much larger than the other.

"Here are your textbooks," she said, handing the larger one to Elphaba and the smaller one to Galinda. "Miss Upland, your book is a basic sorcery book that will tell you how to start using your training wand and how to direct your powers. I gave this to you because I haven't seen any evidence of magical power in you, so you will need to start directly from the beginning."

She turned to Elphaba and her tone brightened considerably. "You, Miss Elphaba, have a basic spell book with some instructions in the front on how to control your powers. Since you have shown signs of magical manifestation, yours is more advanced. I think you will do very well in this arena."

"Thank you, Madame," Elphaba said, taking the spell book reverently. "Will you be giving us personal instruction, or will we have to figure out the spells on our own?"

"At first, I will be tutoring in a controlled environment to make sure you don't… destroy something," she said, glancing at Galinda, who was waving her wand around, trying to cast one of the spells in the back of her book. "But once I am confident of your abilities, I will sort of… how do I say this, set you loose. I will still be supervising you, but I won't be as controlling. I am confident that you will advance to that stage fairly soon."

"Will we be starting today?" Elphaba asked.

Madame Morrible shook her head. "We'll start Wednesday morning, considering today and tomorrow are the first two days of classes and there will no doubt many mix-ups I will have to straighten out. Just look over those books, don't attempt any of the spells, in that time and meet me here on Wednesday at the same time."

"Okay," Elphaba said standing up. "Come on Galinda."

They left Madame Morrible's office and Galinda looked down at her book, and then at Elphaba's. "Is it just me, or does it seem like Madame Morrible doesn't like me?"

_**Once again, I'm sorry for the short chapter, but I'm still getting back into the story. Once I start getting back into it, the chapter will become longer. Thank you all for hanging in with me. I'll try to update tomorrow, but it will come at the end of this week at the latest. Please review, all comments, suggestions, and thoughts are welcome. Thank you again!**_

_**ReallyObsessiveWriter**_


	18. Chapter 18

_**Here's the next chapter. It's a little longer than the past two. Enjoy!**_

The two girls headed to their first class, General Ozian History, and sat down in the front row after Elphaba convinced Galinda that the back wasn't the best place to sit. Students started to wander in and the classroom was mostly full when an old Goat walked in, shutting the door behind him.

"My name is Doctor Dillamond," he said, turning to face the class and trying to talk over them. "And I am your General Ozian History teacher. We will be starting the class immediately and you will have an essay tonight due next class."

"Already?" Galinda moaned.

Doctor Dillamond faced Galinda and nodded solemnly. "If you are not prepared to work hard in this class, then you are not prepared for the real world. There are many more things out in the real world besides essays, papers, and exams, and if you can't write a simple essay or paper, then you are most definitely not ready to fill out an application form for a job and work to earn money."

"Many of us are already in line to receive our parents titles as rulers or dignitaries," a boy in the back of the class said. "We don't have to fill out a job application."

"Well, if you don't know your history then you are destined to repeat the mistakes of the past," Doctor Dillamond said, turning away from Galinda to address the boy. "Many lessons that current dignitaries and rulers learn are from the mistakes and successes of those in the past. For example, the Great Drought. If another drought were to happen, you would only have to think back to what rulers did at that time to see what would or wouldn't work."

"Excuse me, sir, but do you really think that if we don't study history we are destined to repeat the mistakes of the past?" Elphaba asked, drawing his attention to her.

"Mistakes have been repeated over and over again by people in the past, and if we don't pay attention then, yes, I do believe we will repeat the same mistakes," Doctor Dillamond said. "What is your name?"

"I'm Elphaba Thropp," she said.

"Third Descending of Munchkinland?" he asked.

She nodded, blushing a slightly darker green in embarrassment. "Yes."

He nodded thoughtfully and turned away. "I will not be taking attendance every day. You can skip this class all you want, but essays, papers, and exams _will_ be graded on the day they're due and won't be accepted late unless you are given an excuse from Madame Morrible. Notes and assignments should be acquired from your fellow students if you miss class, and if you fall ill, give your assignments to, once again, your fellow students to turn in."

There was the sound of pens on paper and Doctor Dillamond turned to the chalkboard, gesturing to the timeline. "Now, what is history?"

Silence, and he turned to face the class to see all of his students looking at anything except for him. "Anyone?" he asked.

Elphaba raised her hand and he raised his eyebrows, nodding towards her. "It's the study of the past," she said. "Mostly what people have recorded by hand, such as important figures and events."

He nodded. "That is a basic definition," he said. "One that everyone should know. I suggest that you all write that down. Good job, Miss Thropp."

Students began to write furiously, copying down every word he said.

"Now, history is recorded from many different views. For example, someone who dwells in the city might have a different view of, say, let's use the Great Drought as an example again. They might have a different view of the Great Drought than someone who lives in the country. Another example would be the differing views of someone who wins a battle or war and someone who loses. We usually look at the victor's account, but in this class, we will try to see both sides of the story."

"Story?" someone asked. "Are you saying that this is all just a story?"

"That is why it is called hi_story_," Doctor Dillamond said. "It is the story of our past. I could rattle a whole bunch of facts off about different periods of time in Oz, but it would be much more interesting if I told it in chronological order, in the form of a story, would it not?"

There were murmurs of assent and more sounds of scribbling. Doctor Dillamond continued the lecture until the very end of the class. "You have an essay due next class on what history is," he said as students began to pack up their things. "Make sure you include what influences the different views of history and examples of the views, at least five examples. The essay should be three pages long, minimum, front and back, _handwritten_. No typewriters. You are all dismissed."

Chairs scraped against the floor as students hurried towards the door, but Elphaba hung back, Galinda standing uncertainly next to her. Doctor Dillamond erased the board and started to copy down notes from a piece of paper, only turning to them after everyone had left.

"Ah, Miss Elphaba," he said, setting the chalk down. "You are an extremely bright young woman. I'm happy that I have you in my class. And you would be?"

"Galinda Upland of the Arduennas in the Upper Uplands," she said.

"Miss Glinda Upland," Doctor Dillamond said.

"No, it's GUH-linda, with a GUH," Galinda said helpfully. "You know, after Saint Galinda?"

"Yes, Miss Glinda Upland," Doctor Dillamond said.

She opened her mouth to correct him again, but Elphaba put an arm on her shoulder, preventing her from speaking. "Actually, Doctor Dillamond, I was wondering if there was any extra work I could do for this class," Elphaba said. "You see, you've gotten me interested in the current issues we are having, including the recent Animal Banns."

"Ah, yes," Doctor Dillamond said sadly. "It's a shame what is happening with these Banns. It was only ten years ago when you could see more Animals teaching in Universities such as Shiz, and now I'm the only one left, and I'm afraid that that might not last long. But I will hold on as long as I can."

He turned to his desk, struggling to pick up a piece of paper with his hoof, and Elphaba eventually picked it up for him. "Why thank you," he said. "Actually, Miss Elphaba, there is something you could do for me. I am doing a private project and you could help me with research. It's hard to pick up papers and flip pages in a book because I don't have opposable thumbs." He held up his hoofs.

"But I could do so much more if you helped me. It really would be wonderful. Of course, I would give you credit for the work you do with me. But I really only have enough room for one extra worker," he said, looking at Galinda.

"Oh, that's perfectly fine," Galinda said. "I'm more interested in other topics, not that your class isn't interesting, sir. Elphaba would do a whole lot better job than I would, too. She deserves it. But we really have to get going to our next class. It starts in twenty minutes, and I have no idea where this room is."

"Yes, yes, of course," Doctor Dillamond said. "Miss Elphaba, how about you meet me back here tonight at, say, seven-thirty and I'll give you a basic run-through of the project and what I need. Then we can try to work out a schedule so you'll have time to do homework along with helping me."

"I'll be here," Elphaba said, writing the time down in her notebook. "Thank you, sir, you have no idea what this means to me."

"Elphie, we really have to leave," Galinda whined, pulling on Elphaba's arm.

"Okay, I'm coming," Elphaba said, rolling her eyes. "And please don't call me that name in public."

Doctor Dillamond smiled after the two girls as they headed out of the room and down the hall. He could tell that they both would have a role in the future of Oz, and their strange friendship would play a large part, as well.

_**Hope you liked it. It was a little longer than the past couple chapters since I'm starting to get more ideas for the story again. The next post will be on Monday or Tuesday, and Friday or Saturday at the latest. Thank for sticking with me and reading this, and please **_**REVIEW**_**. Thank you again!**_

_**ReallyObsessiveWriter**_

3


	19. Chapter 19

_**Here's the chapter. Enjoy!**_

Galinda was sitting cross-legged on her bed, the eraser of her pencil in her mouth as she stared at the book in her lap with a confused expression on her face. "Elphie, I just don't get this," she whined, throwing her pencil across the room to land on Elphaba's pile of papers.

Elphaba sighed, picking the pencil up and tossing it back to Galinda. "Just… try and see if you can do anything else," she said, looking at the clock on her bedside table, which was almost completely buried beneath a pile of papers. "I have to go meet with Doctor Dillamond now. I'll help you when I get back. Here, you can use my notes if you want, just… don't get them out of order."

She stood up, handing her notes to Galinda, who took the sheaf of papers with wide eyes. "How did you get this many notes?" she whispered.

"Those are from the book, too," Elphaba said, sitting down next to her. "The page numbers are right here, if you need to refer back to the text for reference. All of the lines in quotes are direct from the text, so make sure you put them in quotes in your paper if you use them. And _please_ don't directly copy my sentences. I have to go; I'm going to be late. If you need anything, I'll be with Doctor Dillamond."

"Please, just tell me…"

"I'll be late," Elphaba said, pulling her boots and overcoat on and swinging her satchel over her shoulder. "Look, I promise I'll help you as soon as I get back."

Closing the door behind her, Elphaba hurries down the hallway and out into the night, heading towards the building that contains Doctor Dillamond's classroom. As she enters, she sees the old Goat scurrying around his room, scrambling to pick up papers scattered all over the floor.

"Here, let me help," Elphaba said, dropping her satchel on a desk and kneeling down to grab a handful of papers, straightening them before setting them neatly on a nearby desk. Doctor Dillamond stood up and sighed, bringing his hoof to his temple.

"Thank you, Miss Elphaba," he said as she finished picking up the papers and handed them to him. "I don't know what happened, but when I came out of my office, all of my papers were scattered all over the floor."

"I'm here to help, sir," she said.

"Yes, yes, of course," he said absentmindedly, going over to his podium and stowing the papers underneath. "About that, please come into my office. I really don't want to make this research well known until I'm finished with it. There are those who would seek to stop me from completing it."

Elphaba followed him into his office, staring in awe at the towering bookshelves that reached up to the high ceiling. The shelves were crammed full of books, some hanging off the shelves, and one bump away from falling.

"Be careful of the shelves," Doctor Dillamond said, sitting down at his desk and rifling through some folders. "I've been meaning to reorder them, but I haven't been able to get around to it. Just let me get situated here and I'll fill you in."

He shuffled some more papers, sorting them into folders before clearing his desk off, setting stacks of folders, notebooks, and papers held together by paperclips on the floor. Elphaba took the liberty of claiming the only unoccupied chair.

"So, Miss Elphaba," he said, pushing his glasses up his nose. "You are going to be helping me with my project, and that means I have to fill you in on what I'm doing. Now I don't want to bore you, so I'll give you a general, and simple, overview on what I'm doing."

Elphaba leaned forward as he started to explain. "Basically, what I'm trying to do is prove that Animals and humans aren't very different, aside from how they look. I think if I proved that they weren't different, then these Animal Banns would be lifted and Animals could be entitled to more freedoms."

Going into more detail, he tried to explain exactly what he was doing, but Elphaba only understood part of it. "I'm afraid I don't fully understand, sir," she said when he finished. "I mean, I get the gist of what you're doing, but I don't understand the in-depth analysis."

"Never mind, then," he said, standing. "You understand all you need to for now. If I need you to conduct any of the research for me, I'll educate you more thoroughly. For now, that will have to do. You'll be fetching books for me, writing down notes, and organizing papers. Perhaps, if we have time, you can help me reorganize these shelves so they aren't as dangerous."

"Would you like me to start tonight?" Elphaba asked.

"No," he said, shaking his head. "Tonight is too soon. I still have to get my thesis together, write it all out formally. Perhaps I can start searching through these books… but no. Talk to me after class tomorrow and we'll see what we have. Thank you for offering to help, Miss Elphaba. You have no idea how much of a contribution you're making to society."

"It really is no problem," Elphaba said, standing as she blushed a darker green. "All of your work seems interesting, and I love learning. Just… tell me if you need anything, and when you need it. I'm always happy to help."

He nodded, but was already lost in his papers. Elphaba left the small office, walking through the classroom and slowly back to her room while thinking over Doctor Dillamond's whole project.

She wasn't a stupid girl, she was actually a lot smarter than most people she knew, but everything Doctor Dillamond had said, besides his initial statements, had baffled her. Just trying to wrap her mind around the phrases he had spouted out made her head hurt. Walking into Crage Hall, she was glad that she had found something that would challenge her. The classes she had attended didn't seem very hard and she had been disappointed.

"Elphaba, thank Oz!" Galinda exclaimed as she walked into her room. "I have no idea what I'm doing. I've got my introductory paragraph written out, but everything passed that just flies over my head! Would you _please_ help me?"

"Of course, just let me take off my coat," Elphaba said, dropping her satchel on a bare spot on her bed and shedding her coat on top of it. "Besides, I wasn't gone _that_ long. Here, let me see your essay and what you've got written so far."

Galinda wordlessly handed over her essay and Elphaba skimmed over it, picking a pencil up from her bedside table, and writing a few comments on the page. "You have a few errors," she said, point to the circled words. "But otherwise, you have a really good start here. I think if you just switch a few words around in this last sentence, you can lead right into your first point here. Look how it connects to the first paragraph in our book."

The blonde was scribbling notes down on a scrap of paper as Elphaba pointed all of this out and the green girl laughed, making Galinda look up at her in confusion. "What?" she asked.

"It's just… I never thought you would be this… diligent with your studies," Elphaba said, trying to suppress the smile that had appeared on her face. "You've always seemed like more of a… society girl."

"Oh," Galinda said, looking a little disappointed. "You see, I'm the first girl who has ever made it into Shiz University from Pertha Hills, and I really don't want to ruin my chances from here. If I don't get a certain level of grades, my parents are going to pull me out and bring me back home to be married off to some wealthy bachelor who's forty years my senior."

"That's horrible," Elphaba gasped.

Galinda shrugged. "I'm lucky," she said quietly. "If it hadn't been for my acceptance letter into Shiz, I would probably be on my honeymoon right now in the Emerald City on the arm of some old geezer. Many other girls don't have a choice of going to a university, even if they are accepted. My parents gave me the chance. But the second I mess up, I'm out of here."

"Well, then, we'll have to make sure that doesn't happen," Elphaba said decisively after a moment of awkwardness. "Here's your essay, and if you need any further help, I'll be just across the room working on my own."

"Thank you, Elphaba," Galinda whispered as Elphaba settled down on her bed and started writing her essay.

"No problem," she whispered back. "After all, that's what friends are for, right?"

_**Hope you liked it. The next chapter will be up tomorrow or Thursday, Saturday at the latest. Please REVIEW. I really appreciate all thoughts, comments, and suggestions you leave for me. And thank you to all of my readers and reviewers.**_

_**ReallyObsessiveWriter**_

3


	20. Chapter 20

_**Sorry that's it's taken me so long to update. Here's the next chapter. Enjoy!**_

Time passed quickly at Shiz. The small group of Elphaba and Galinda had grown larger to include Fiyero, since he was now officially dating Galinda, Nessa, because she insisted on spending time with Elphaba, and Boq, who was dragged along by Nessa and had willingly accompanied her after he found out that Galinda would most likely be around her if she was visiting Elphaba.

When the weather was nice, they would all go out onto the Shiz green and have picnics, study for upcoming exams, or just laugh and talk with each other. On these occasions, Nessa would desperately try to get Boq to pay attention to her while he gazed at Galinda with adoration. Fiyero would hold Galinda in his arms, whispering small sentences in her ear that only she could hear. She often glanced over at Boq and laughed when Fiyero said these things. Elphaba would look up every time Galinda would laugh, shake her head in disapproval, glance over at Nessa with a worried look, and then go back to reading the book she brought along.

When Nessa wasn't with them, they would venture into the woods and sit by the river under a large willow tree they had found. On these occasions, Galinda had the full attention of two boys, but she barely paid attention to either of them. She would sit next to Elphaba, leaning against the giant willow tree, and just talk with her about anything that came up.

Family was mentioned a lot, though not in great detail with Elphaba, past traveling experiences, favorite and least favorite teachers, and people who were being extremely rude to them. It was at this time that Galinda's sketchbook appeared in her hand and she started to draw. Sometimes Elphaba would just watch Galinda sketch out pictures of things. At one moment, she would be drawing a bird, or a flower, and the next, the page would be turning, and she would furiously be sketching out a building, or a city. That was one thing that came to light once Galinda and Elphaba got to know each other. Galinda was interested in architecture while Elphaba intended to major in life sciences.

As the school year progressed, Elphaba became more and more distant from the little group. She had once laughed and talked with them, looking up occasionally from her book on Shiz green, sitting with Galinda under the willow by the river, sitting with them in the cafeteria at lunch, _occasionally_ passing notes during class, and staying up late with Galinda on weekends to talk. But she gradually stopped looking up from her book on the Shiz green, she stared at notes she had written when they went to the river, was completely engrossed in her studies at lunch, ignored all of the notes her friends passed to her during classes, and stayed out late on weekends, coming back to her room long after Galinda fell asleep.

All of that ended three weeks after they got back from their winter break. Galinda had gone home for three days Lurlinemas Eve, Lurlinemas, and the day after, coming back to spend the rest of her time with Fiyero, Nessa, Boq, and what little she saw of Elphaba. Elphaba herself had spent most of her time working with Doctor Dillamond on the project she was so secretive about.

Three weeks into the start of the new year and at the start of the new semester, Elphaba came back early from working with Doctor Dillamond. Galinda looked up in surprise when the door to their room opened and Elphaba stepped in, slipping out of her muddy books and hanging her coat on the back of a chair. She dropped her books on her bed and looked tiredly at Galinda.

"Why are you back so early?" Galinda asked curiously.

"What do you mean?" Elphaba asked. "I'm usually here at this time."

Galinda looked at her, eyebrows raised. "Um, no, definitely not," she said. "You always come back late after I've gone to sleep, especially on weekends. You haven't come back at this time for at least two months."

"Oh, Oz, I'm sorry Galinda," Elphaba said, her eyes widening when she realized what she had been doing. "I haven't been spending any time with you, have I? You've been getting help on your homework, haven't you?"

"Yeah, you helped me with my homework," Galinda said, giving Elphaba a stack of papers. "You gave yours to me and I ended up just teaching myself while using your information from your notes."

"I'm sorry, Galinda," Elphaba said. "But I'll be spending more time with you now, especially now that I know I've been neglecting you as a friend. You should have told me, I would have done something about it. But Doctor Dillamond is finished with his research and he just needs to put his presentation together. Then he can go to the Emerald City, request an audience with the Wizard, and present his results to him. The Wizard will then repeal the Banns and everything will go back to the way it was."

"Has he found everything that he needs, then?" Galinda asked.

"I think so," Elphaba said cautiously. "I know that he did some research without me because there are some things that are very confidential, but he's shown mostly everything to me, and it's just really exciting. He told me that he hopes to take some students with him to the Emerald City when he goes and was thinking about taking me, and perhaps someone of my choice."

Galinda smiled tightly. "That's nice," she said. "I hope you and Nessa have a good time when you go."

Elphaba screwed her face up in confusion. "What makes you think I would be choosing Nessa?" she asked. "First of all, she puts a damper on things when you really want to have fun. She's more of a mother than a sister. Second of all, I don't think she would want to go, anyways. She's never really had a taste for big cities, she hates Center Munch, and that's only a quarter of the size of Emerald City, if that. And last… he told me that I could bring a _friend_. My sister is definitely _not_ my friend."

"Who would you be taking, then?" Galinda asked breathlessly.

She laughed. "Why you, of course? What other friends do I have? Nessa would be upset if I took Boq away from her. And besides, he spends more time mooning after you than he does talking to me. I don't really consider Fiyero a friend. He's more of an… acquaintance. Pfannee and ShenShen are definitely out of it since they absolutely hate my guts. Galinda… face it, if you're friends with me, you're stuck with me."

Galinda laughed and hurled towards Elphaba, wrapping her arms around her neck and hugging her fiercely. "Oh, Elphie, thank you so much!" she exclaimed. "You don't know how much this means to me!"

"Haven't you ever been to the Emerald City before?" Elphaba asked, slipping out of Galinda's embrace. "I mean, you seem like the kind of girl who would have gone about thirty times just in her childhood."

"No, my parents were too concerned with making me fit to marry," Galinda said bitterly. "They didn't have time to take me on special outings. Elphie, my life was a lot different than it is now. Before, all of my parents' time and money was spent on finding me a good husband. Now that I go to a prestigious college, they've bought me clothes, books, jewelry, things of my own so that I can fit in with everyone else."

Suddenly, Elphaba held a hand up for Galinda to be quiet and she turned towards the window and stared through the rain at the building Doctor Dillamond's office was housed in. She had this nagging feeling in her mind that something had happened to him and shifted uncomfortably. He had a high window in his office, and the light was still on, but that didn't mean anything. Bad things could happen with the lights on.

"What is it?" Galinda whispered.

"I don't know," Elphaba said quietly, squinting her eyes as it started to rain harder. "I just… got this feeling, like this chill down my spine, and I think it has something to do with Doctor Dillamond."

The blonde stood up and went to the balcony doors, peering out through the rain. "The light's still on," she said.

"But that doesn't mean anything," Elphaba said decisively, turning and picking her coat up off the back of the chair. "I'm going to check on him. He'll understand, he's had these feelings before."

"You're leaving me here?" Galinda whimpered, and Elphaba turned to her, rolling her eyes.

"You can come with me if you want," she said, smiling slightly as she pulled her boots on and laced them up. "I'm going over there and checking on him whether you come with me or not, though, not to be rude or anything. I'll be back as soon as I make sure that he's okay."

Galinda looked outside hesitantly. "Fine, I'm coming with you," she said, running to her closet and pulling out a raincoat and a pair of bright yellow rain boots that matched her dress perfectly. Elphaba just laughed and shook her head. "What?" Galinda asked indignantly.

"Only you would have bright yellow rain boots," she laughed.

"Just because my favorite color isn't black doesn't mean that you have to make fun of me," Galinda huffed, pulling on the boots and slipping her coat on. "Really, Elphaba, you should try yellow sometime."

"I would look like a neon sign," Elphaba said. "Really, Galinda, you should consider the color of my skin before you suggest any color of clothing for me. The only reason I wear so much black is because it goes so well."

They headed out the door, continuing their bickering and unaware of what they would find when they walked into Doctor Dillamond's office.

_**Well, there you go. Sort of a cliffhanger. I'll try to update tomorrow, but I can't promise anything. Thank you all for sticking with me, and celebrate the twentieth chapter by REVIEWING PLEASE!!! Twenty chapters, and now that I look back, it's taken me such a long time to post all of them, and it's been quite a journey. The end is getting nearer. Once again, REVIEW!!! Thank you to all of my readers and reviewers, I really appreciate all thoughts, comments, and suggestions. Special thanks to those who reviewed Chapter 19:**_

_**ghostly bender**_

_**modified**_

_**I will try to acknowledge everyone who has reviewed previous chapters in each consecutive update. I realize how much time it takes to write a review and really put something into it. I really appreciate it, and I apologize to all of those who I haven't acknowledged.**_

_**Thank you again!**_

_**ReallyObsessiveWriter**_

4


	21. Chapter 21

_**Here's the next chapter. Enjoy!**_

Elphaba and Galinda entered the History Building and took off their raincoats, hanging them on pegs inside the coat room. They made their way up to Doctor Dillamond's office, nodding politely to professors and students who were just getting out of tutoring sessions and were on their way back to their apartments and dorm rooms. When they arrived outside of Doctor Dillamond's classroom, Elphaba paused, listening for the usual humming that indicated that the old Goat was still at work.

"It's too quiet," Elphaba whispered to Galinda, who had her eyes open wide with fear. "I'm going to go in. You can stay out here if you want, though."

"No, don't leave me out here alone," Galinda whispered frantically. "I'm going in with you."

The girls opened the door to the classroom, relieved to see that nothing was amiss. Doctor Dillamond had left his usual stack of textbooks on his desk and a pile of folders had been neatly set on the front row of desks. Elphaba made her way to the office door, which was slightly cracked open, a small amount of light spilling out into the classroom.

"Doctor Dillamond?" Elphaba called loudly, but there was silence, except for the barely detectable whir of clockwork. Elphaba stepped forward and reached out for the handle of the door, curling her fingers around the cold metal, and slowly opening it. She looked back at Galinda, who was nervously biting her fingernails, and stepped inside, her mouth dropping open when she saw Doctor Dillamond on the floor, his throat slit, and a small, mechanical creature she had never seen before standing beside him, a blade-like extension covered in red blood.

Elphaba's boot made a small creaking noise on the wood floor and the creature turned towards her, small red eyes burning without emotion in its head. It whirred loudly and darted towards, blade raised, until Galinda stepped in, screaming when she saw the thing heading towards Elphaba. The thing swerved out of the door, disappearing into the darkness.

Tears streamed down Galinda's face when she saw Doctor Dillamond laying on the floor, blood congealed around his neck and a startled expression frozen on his face. Elphaba quickly took Galinda into her arms and the blonde buried her face in the green girl's shoulder.

Five minutes after Galinda had screamed, a crowd of professors and students rushed through the classroom and into the office, the girls screaming when they saw the still body of Doctor Dillamond and the professors quickly ushering the students out of the room. One professor, a younger man with a full head of hair and a cleanly shaven face, took Elphaba and Galinda out of the office, through the classroom, and into another empty classroom, offering them both glasses of water. Elphaba took one of the glasses, setting it down on the table, and thanked the man.

"Is there anything else I can get you?" he asked, a look of worry on his face as Galinda continued to sob into Elphaba's shoulder.

"Just… make sure that whoever killed Doctor Dillamond is caught and punished," Elphaba growled, her eyes flashing angrily.

He looked at her suspiciously. "Did you see something when you went in there?" he asked.

She hesitated, but only for a moment, a moment so short that the professor didn't notice at all. "No," she said. "We were in our dorm room, and I had just come back from getting some extra work from Doctor Dillamond when we saw that the light in his study was still on. He had told me that he would be retiring just after I left, and I thought it suspicious that he had forgotten to turn the light off. I told Galinda here that I was going to go check on him, and she offered to go with me. It was very quiet when we entered the classroom, but nothing looked out of place. We entered his office, and there he was, just as you saw him. That was when Galinda screamed."

"I'm very sorry that you had to see such a traumatizing sight," he said. "I will talk to Madame Morrible and ensure that you have the rest of your week's classes off to recover."

"Thank you," Elphaba said. "Would you mind if I escorted my roommate back to our room. The sight seems to have thrown her into hysterics and I fear that if I don't get her calmed down soon, she'll pass out."

He nodded, stepping back a bit. "Ah… of course. I'll alert Madame Morrible of the situation and tell her where you've gone. I'm sorry, but I didn't catch your name?"

"Elphaba," she said. "Elphaba Thropp. And this is Galinda Upland. Thank you, sir, now we'll be on our way."

She stood up and put a supporting arm around Galinda's shoulders, hooking her hand under her arm to keep her from falling down. Galinda leaned on Elphaba all the way back to her dorm room. When they got there, Elphaba sat Galinda down on the bed and rushed to the bathroom, getting a glass of water for the upset girl.

"Come on, Galinda, snap out of it," Elphaba said, handing the glass of water to Galinda, who took a small sip and continued to sob. "Look, Galinda, I have to talk to you before Madame Morrible gets here to question us. You mustn't tell her anything about that clockwork creature, do you understand me? Galinda, I need you to answer me, please, Galinda."

Galinda continued to sob, so Elphaba wrenched the glass of water out of her hand and dumped it over her head, which quickly got her attention. "I-I've left m-my coat… in the c-cloakroom," she hiccupped.

"Someone will bring them to us," Elphaba said, glad that it had stopped raining in time for them to make the walk back to their room. "Now listen to me. I have a bad feeling about that clockwork creature and Madame Morrible. You must promise not to tell her about it, do you understand."

"Y-yes," Galinda whispered, pulling out a handkerchief and wiping her eyes with it, not caring that she was ruining her makeup.

"Tell her that you saw me go in, and you went in yourself, then screamed when you saw Doctor Dillamond on the floor, do you understand?" Elphaba asked, getting a nod from Galinda. "If she asks for any more details, tell her that I turned you away from the scene before you could really take anything. Say that you just saw a lot of blood and a stricken look on Doctor Dillamond's face, okay?"

"D-Doctor Dillamond," Galinda whispered, tears still streaming down her face, leaving long trails of black makeup. "P-poor Doctor D-Dillamond."

"Oh, my sweet, everything is going to be okay," Elphaba whispered, gathering the sobbing girl into her arms. "I really wish that you hadn't been dragged into this. Someone must have found out about Doctor Dillamond's work and must have not liked it. Galinda, it's going to be okay. Soon, you'll forget the whole seen and all you'll remember is that Doctor Dillamond died in his office. Shhh, it's going to be okay."

There was a knock at the door and Elphaba looked ominously at Galinda. "Remember," she whispered, "you just saw a lot of blood and stricken look on his face before I turned you away."

She went to the door and waited for another knock before opening it, standing aside so Madame Morrible could come in. The large woman glanced around the room before focusing in on the sobbing form of Galinda, who had collapsed on her bed.

"Professor Theo told me that you two girls had gone back to your room, mainly because Miss Galinda was traumatized by the sight she saw in Doctor Dillamond's office," the Headmistress said, sending Galinda into a new round of sobs at Doctor Dillamond's name.

"Yes, Madame, she isn't coping very well with the scene she saw," Elphaba said. "Would you mind if I closed the door? Galinda would like some privacy so as not to broadcast her emotional state to all of Crage Hall."

"Yes, yes, of course," Madame Morrible said, looking through a stack of books on Elphaba's desk. "Professor Theo said that you had been with Doctor Dillamond just before this happened?"

"Yes, Madame," Elphaba said, not giving anymore than was asked for.

"Would you care to give me details? It might help determine his cause of death," Madame Morrible said.

"I had just come back from getting some extra work from him and I saw the light on in his study, which I thought was unusual because he said he was going to retire only a few minutes after I left and he always turns the light out. I told Galinda that I was going to check on him, and she said that she would come with me. When we got there, all of the lights were on and Doctor Dillamond was on the floor."

"Miss Galinda, could you calm down enough so I could ask you some questions?" Madame Morrible asked, and the blonde stopped sobbing and turned to Madame Morrible. "What did you see when you went into Doctor Dillamond's office?"

"W-well, I saw M-Miss Elphaba go in, and… and I w-went in, and th-there he was, with… with… with b-blood all around him and a… a stricken look on his f-face. And then Elphaba t-turned m-me away s-so I c-couldn't s-see anymore."

"And who was the girl that screamed?" Madame Morrible asked.

"That was Galinda, Madame," Elphaba said.

"Miss Elphaba, could you describe the scene in detail to me?" Madame Morrible asked.

"Would you mind if we went into the parlor and discussed this?" Elphaba asked, glancing at Galinda, who was beginning to look queasy.

Madame Morrible nodded, also looking at Galinda. "Yes, I suppose."

They sat down in the parlor and Elphaba began her description. "The first thing I saw when I stepped into the room was broken glass at the table Doctor Dillamond had been working at. I believe he was working on an extra powerful magnifying glass that could help see things that the naked eye had never seen before, even assisted by a magnifying glass."

"Yes, continue," Madame Morrible said, nodding.

"And then I saw Doctor Dillamond himself," Elphaba said. "He had a large cut on his neck, something had severed his main artery, and I believe it was quite recent because the blood was just beginning to dry. I wouldn't know such things, though, they aren't really relevant to the field I am going into."

"Of course, Miss Elphaba, now continue with the description," Madame Morrible said, waving her hand impatiently.

"I'm trying to remember," Elphaba said. "One tries to forget such scenes quickly, you know. Ah, yes, the look on his face. It was a look of surprise. His mouth was slightly open, like he was going to say something, and his eyes were open, as well, glassy, like shined beads. Blood matted his fur, so I couldn't really see his expression beyond that. I think one of his horns had hit the table, his left one was cracked. And that's all I can really remember."

"Now, were you the first ones at the scene?" Madame Morrible asked. "Did you see anyone or anything else?"

Elphaba shook her head. "No, Madame, why do you ask? Have you caught someone with a bloodied knife or a guilty conscience?"

Madame Morrible shook her head. "No, it's just Professor Theo said that you asked him to catch whoever had murdered Doctor Dillamond and I thought that you might have seen something."

"Oh, that," Elphaba said. "Well, I thought it such an odd place for someone to get such a deep wound just from a piece of glass that I automatically assumed it a murder. Of course, I wouldn't know because I am not trained in that area."

"I see," Madame Morrible said. "And who entered the room first, you or Miss Galinda?"

"It was I," Elphaba said. "But I was in Galinda's view the whole time. Not long after Galinda screamed did a crowd of professors and students rush into the room. I hope no one messed up the scene so the coroner could examine poor Doctor Dillamond without anyone messing anything up."

"The professors got it blocked off in time, I'm sure," Madame Morrible said, standing up. "Well, thank you for your time. The whole school will have the rest of the week's classes off due to the untimely tragedy. We do have to fill in a professor's spot, as well, considering Doctor Dillamond's death."

"Then he is most surely dead?" Elphaba asked curiously.

"Unfortunately," Madame Morrible said. "Mourning garbs will be the required uniform for the next three days. On the third day, a memorial service will be held and the new professor will be introduced."

"Do you already have someone in mind, then?" Elphaba asked.

"Yes, I think I do," Madame Morrible said with a small smile. "Now hurry on up and get into bed. The next few days will be quite tiring for you and Miss Galinda, I'm sure, due to all of the questions your fellow classmates will be asking you."

She opened the door and the clockwork creature Elphaba and Galinda had seen in Doctor Dillamond's office whirred inside, stopping in front of Madame Morrible. Elphaba's eyes widened when she saw it.

"Is something wrong, Miss Elphaba?" Madame Morrible asked.

"No," Elphaba whispered. "I've just never seen one such as this creature before. What is it?"

Madame Morrible looked disappointed. "It is a tiktok creature," Madame Morrible said. "It is made of screws, bolts, cogs, and metal. Actually, it is a fairly new invention from the Emerald City."

"Oh, I see," Elphaba murmured, knitting her brows together as she started to think. "Well, I suppose I will be seeing you soon, then, Madame Morrible."

"Yes, soon," the Headmistress said, turning on her heel and heading out the door. As soon as Madame Morrible had left, Elphaba slammed the door shut, turned the lock, drew the chain across, and bolted the door shut. She could almost swear she still heard a whirring outside the door.

Running to the balcony doors, she locked them as well, pulling out one of her sorcery books and blackening the windows, making them as hard as steel, and making the handles unable to turn from the outside. She closed and locked the windows, drawing the curtains across and looked at Galinda breathlessly.

"Elphaba, what's wrong?" Galinda asked. She had calmed down considerably since Madame Morrible had left.

"That woman… had the nerve to bring that… that… that _thing_ here to our dorm room!" Elphaba exploded. "That clockwork creature was in our parlor! And she had the nerve to bring it here! Galinda, I don't want you going out by yourself. That creature saw you and if it killed Doctor Dillamond, which I greatly suspect it did, then it will not hesitate to come after the two of us. Keep Fiyero, or Boq, or even ShenShen and Pfannee with you at all times if I am not with you. And always tell someone else where you're going before you leave the room."

"Do you really think that is necessary?" Galinda asked.

"Please, Galinda, promise me," Elphaba begged. "If not for you own safety, then for my sake. Tell everyone that I'm being a paranoid mother hen, I don't care. But please, don't go out by yourself, and whatever you do, don't tell anyone about that clockwork creature."

"Fine, but only because you insist," Galinda said. "I really don't see what the point is, though. If that thing wants to kill me, it'll kill me whether I'm with people or not. It probably won't hesitate to kill the people I'm with."

"Just as long as you promise those things," Elphaba sighed in relief. "Now, Madame Morrible said required uniform for the next three days is mourning garb, so you're going to have to wear all black. I'm just warning you."

For once, Galinda didn't complain. She quickly got ready for bed and snuggled under the covers. Elphaba didn't bother to stay up reading that night, but instead, waited for the stroke of one o'clock in the morning and headed over to Doctor Dillamond's office under the cover of night. She started at every sound and quickly made her way into the building and up to the study.

Some black ropes had roped off the area, but she quickly ducked underneath them, entering the study. She chanted a spell and a small orb of light appeared that only she would be able to see. Hurrying, she gathered papers, books, and research materials, stowing them in her satchel quickly.

As she hurried back, she imagined the sound of the tiktok creature behind her and sprinted to her dorm room, locking the door behind her and throwing a series of spells at it so no one would be able to get in from the outside unless they were proficient in magic and spell work.

Pulling up a loose floorboard, Elphaba hid all of Doctor Dillamond's work in the small, hollowed out space, covering it with a pink throw rug Galinda had decorated the room with. Changing into a nightdress, she collapsed on her bed, but didn't sleep the whole night. Instead, she listened to the sounds outside of her room, imagining the soulless red eyes searching for a way inside the room to kill her in her sleep.

_**I got so freaked out when I wrote this chapter, I kept looking around for this little metal creature that wanted to kill me. Heh, I really freak myself out. Well, hope you liked it. Special thanks to those who reviewed the last chapter:**_

_**moodified**_

_**ghostly bender**_

_**Thank to the other who have reviewed previous chapters, and thank you to all of my readers. Now, please continue to review. That's what that little green button is for. Click, type up a review, and then click submit! ;) Thank you all again!**_

_**ReallObsessiveWriter**_

6


	22. Chapter 22

_**Here's the next chapter. Enjoy!!!**_

The next day, all of Shiz University had been decked out in black. Instead of the usual blue and white banners with the Shiz emblem hanging from the lampposts, there were banners of a deep, midnight black. Students and faculty members alike dressed in all black, honoring the death of one of the most esteemed professors at Shiz.

When Elphaba got up the next morning, she lifted all the spells from the windows and doors and went outside, looking out at the grounds. For once, there were no birds chirping, no trees rustling in the wind, no movement on the grounds, and no sun to brighten up the day. Even the weather seemed to imitate the mood that had taken over Shiz University. The snow had taken on an ugly, brown color as it started to melt and mix with the mud.

"Elphie?"

She turned to see Galinda standing behind her, a blanket wrapped around her shoulders. Her eyes were red from crying, her makeup had been smeared all over her face, and her hair was unkempt. Elphaba saw Galinda shivering and quickly went into the room, shutting and locking the balcony doors. "Yes, Galinda?" she asked.

"Did… did last night really happen?" Galinda whispered.

Elphaba hesitated and then nodded, pulling the small blonde into a hug when she began to cry. This protectiveness surprised her. The only other people she had really felt really protective of were Nessarose and Shell, and that was mostly because they were family. With Galinda, it was different. Whenever she saw the blonde crying, her heart ached and she felt like crying herself.

"I… I had a nightmare last night," Galinda whimpered when she had calmed down enough to speak. "That mechanical creature was chasing us, and I started to fall behind, and you were telling me to run faster. It was just about to get me when… when you turned around and ran straight at it, and you told me to run. Then it grabbed you and disappeared. You were lying on the ground with blood on your neck and your eyes wide open and staring at nothing, and then you turned into Doctor Dillamond."

Galinda started to cry again, leaning on Elphaba and sobbing into her shoulder. Elphaba buried her face in Galinda's hair, murmuring quietly to her as she rubbed her back comfortingly. "It's okay," she whispered.

"But I don't want to lose you," Galinda sobbed, her voice muffled. "You're the best friend I've ever had, the only person I can really trust besides Fiyero, and I can't even really tell him a lot of things. I don't want you to die."

Laughing, Elphaba stroked Galinda's hair. "What makes you think that I'm going to die?" she asked. "I'm right here with you and nothing's going to happen to me. We're all safe and protected at Shiz University. What happened to Doctor Dillamond had nothing to do with you or me and it's all going to end with that."

"Why didn't you want me to tell Madame Morrible about that clockwork creature?" Galinda asked, looking up at Elphaba.

She hesitated. "Because I had a feeling," Elphaba said after a few moments. "I had a suspicion, and I wanted to make sure, and I was right. Just… forget that you even saw that thing, and if you ever see it again, just ignore it, okay?"

"You're hiding something from me," Galinda whispered. "Something's going on and you don't want me to know about it. What is it? Elphaba Thropp, you tell me this instant."

"I don't want to endanger you," Elphaba said.

Galinda looked at her stubbornly. "You're endangering me by telling me to keep that clockwork thing a secret," she said. "What if someone finds out that we both saw it and tells Madame Morrible? Tell me what you're hiding from me; you can't put me in any more danger than I'm already in."

"Just a moment ago you were breaking down because you were afraid that I was going to die and now you're demanding life-threatening information from me?" Elphaba asked incredulously.

"My own life doesn't matter," Galinda said.

"Don't you dare say that again!" Elphaba said sternly, surprising Galinda. "And I mean it, don't you even think it!"

"Just tell me what you're keeping from me," Galinda said, crossing her arms over her chest and taking a step back.

Elphaba sighed and sat down on her bed, patting the space beside her for Galinda to sit down, as well. "I can't tell you everything," she said. "It really is dangerous and I promised Doctor Dillamond I wouldn't say much, and the other stuff is just really dangerous and shouldn't be talked about at all."

She took a deep breath. "As you might know, Doctor Dillamond was researching for similarities between Animals and humans so the Animal Banns could be lifted. He was basically researching the origins of Animals and trying to see if there was something ingrained in the religious aspect that would tell how Animals were created with conscious thought. He was also trying to prove scientifically that Animals and humans are no different.

"It was very top secret work, I could tell no one about it in case someone who didn't like it found out. Doctor Dillamond was in danger of being arrested if someone found out. Obviously, someone _did_ find out, didn't like it, and took care of the situation before it could get out of hand. And I want to take this to the Wizard."

Galinda stared at her for a moment. "You _what_?" she asked. "Are you crazy? You can't go see the letter unless you're invited!"

"Yes you can," Elphaba said calmly. "And I will. I'm not going to let Doctor Dillamond's death be in vain."

"You're going to leave, and then you're going to get arrested and get thrown in the Southstairs and I'll never be allowed to see you again," Galinda said, tears starting to stream down her face again. "Don't go, Elphie, please."

"I'm not going right now," Elphaba said. "I still have to decipher Doctor Dillamond's work and finish his research, and I think I'm going to do that during the summer when I have more time. For right now, I'm going to concentrate on my studies, and perhaps I'll change my major."

"What're you going to change your major to?" Galinda asked.

Elphaba looked at her seriously. "Political sciences."

_**Sorry that this chapter is so short, but the next part doesn't really fit in this chapter. Thank you to popular_darling for reviewing Chapter 21, and thank you to all of my other reviewers and my readers. I really appreciate all thoughts, comments, and suggestions. And please REVIEW. Thank you again!**_

_**ReallyObsessiveWriter**_

3


	23. Chapter 23

_**Here's the next chapter. Enjoy!!!**_

Three days passed and rumors started to float around Shiz about the death of Doctor Dillamond. He had been murdered by Elphaba, the weird green girl who had grown mysteriously close to him throughout the school year and had been at the scene when his body had been found. Most people laughed this away because they all knew that Elphaba had been extremely fond of the old Goat. Boq had reported that he had seen her break down crying behind a tree when she hadn't realized he was there.

Another theory was that he had been part of a conspiracy with other Animals to overthrow humans and create a society dominated by Animals and where humans were their slaves. The rumor went on to say that a group of people had heard about Doctor Dillamond's involvement in the conspiracy and had been sent to kill him. This rumor was dismissed because the Goat had been close friends with many of his fellow professors, who were all humans.

The third, and most believed speculation was that the professor had done something that the Wizard hadn't liked and had been swiftly taken care of. Rumors of tiktok creatures patrolling the grounds at night started to circulate, saying that they were watching and listening for plots against the Wizard and wouldn't hesitate to kill anyone they came across. Students began to return to their dorm buildings earlier and earlier in the day for fear of being caught by one of these machines.

And of course, there was the "real" story that was being circulated by Madame Morrible herself. She simply said that the Goat had fallen in his study, cut a main artery on a piece of glass, and that most of his blood had flowed out of his body, killing him, before he could call for help. A mysterious tiktok creature began following her around and doing her bidding over the three days of mourning, and students became wary when it was in their presence.

Elphaba laughed at all of these theories when she was alone in her dorm room with Galinda. She would criticize those who accused her, scoff at those who blamed the Wizard, roll her eyes at those who thought Doctor Dillamond was part of a conspiracy, and keep an eerie silence whenever Madame Morrible's story was mentioned.

Boq and Fiyero spent most of their time in Elphaba and Galinda's dorm room with them because, for the most part, the girls never ventured out of the room themselves for fear of being bombarded with questions about the death of Doctor Dillamond. Boys were forbidden entrance to the girls' dormitories, but they snuck in early in the morning when Elphaba just woke up and waited in the parlor until Galinda was awake and dressed to go into the rest of the room.

On the second day, Fiyero posed a thought-filled question at Elphaba, surprising everyone in the room. "Hey, Elphaba, do you suppose Doctor Dillamond actually slipped in his office and cut his neck on a piece of glass? I mean, it seems an awkward place to receive a cut, especially to the main artery there."

The green girl stared at him for a moment before answering, glancing at Galinda meaningfully before she started. "I suppose there's a chance, a very small, infinitesimal chance, that the cause of his death wasn't a slip, a fall, and a shard of glass, but how would it have happened?"

Fiyero shrugged. "I don't know, that's what you're supposed to tell me," he said. "You're smart, you have the great power of deduction, and you understand things better than the rest of us put together. If anyone can figure out if Doctor Dillamond really died the way Madame Morrible said he did, it would be you. And we all know that you've snuck into Doctor Dillamond's study at least one time, if not more, since he died."

"What would make you think such a thing?" Elphaba asked, her eyes narrowing and her arms automatically assuming a defensive position as they crossed over her chest. "As I would have you know, I have always strictly obeyed the rules that make sense, and it makes sense for Doctor Dillamond's study to be banned to students due to the fact that it is still being examined by the coroner and an inspector."

Everyone knew that what Elphaba said wasn't true. She had snuck out of the room and into the library multiple times during the year, breaking many schools rules such as being out past hours, stealing the keys from one of the janitors, and putting an extra dose of sleeping medicine in Madame Morrible's evening brandy. They all looked at her with raised eyebrows, but she refused to back down.

"Come on, Elphaba, you have to have at least one theory of your own," Boq urged. "You worked with him closely, he had to have said something that indicated any reason why he may have been targeted to have been murdered."

"So you both think he's been murdered, as well?" Elphaba asked, raising her eyebrows. "And what evidence do you have of this? Or are you just listening to the gossip and secretly suggesting to each other that I'm some assassin and the only reason you're here is to make sure that I don't kill poor Galinda in her sleep?"

"Of course not, why would we think such a silly thing?" Fiyero asked, leaning forward eagerly. "Come on, Miss Elphie, tell us what you think. There has to be something rolling around in that head of yours, there always is."

"I suspect that if she has a theory of her own, she will voice it when she chooses to voice it," Galinda said coldly. "Now, can we get on to more pleasant topics? Speaking of the dead always makes chills run up and down my spine."

"Is something wrong, Galinda?" Elphaba asked quietly, looking the girl up and down and then trying to assess what was wrong by the expression showing on her face. "Should Fiyero and Boq leave? If their presence is disturbing you, I'm sure that they wouldn't mind going back to whatever they do when they aren't with us."

"No, I just don't wish to speak of Doctor Dillamond anymore," Galinda said stiffly. "And I don't think you should, either, after everything that's happened recently." Her eyes narrowed during this last phrase and Elphaba nodded understandingly, turning to Fiyero and Boq.

"She's right," she said. "It is disrespectful to talk of the dead in such ways. Let's change the topic."

Boq looked from Elphaba, to Galinda, and back again, trying to decode the glances and looks they were giving each other. "Is there something going on between you two that you aren't telling us about?"

Galinda's face paled and Elphaba stood up abruptly. "I think you have overstayed your welcome," she said, showing them to the parlor, and then to the door. "Madame Morrible is in a meeting for another fifteen minutes, so I suggest that you get out of here before she catches you. And I would like to ask that you do not mention Doctor Dillamond's name in mine or Galinda's presence unless it is in a reverent tone, thank you very much. Now good day to you, and I'm sure that we'll be seeing you tomorrow at the memorial service. We'll meet you by the western service entrance of the Shiz Chapel."

They were pushed out the door forcefully by a determined Elphaba, confused looks on their faces. She shut the door behind them and locked it, leaning against it and sliding to the floor as Galinda entered the parlor, her face an ashen color. "What if they had found out?" she whispered. "What if they suspect?"

Elphaba shook her head. "They don't suspect," she whispered. "Boq isn't imaginative enough and Fiyero doesn't have the brains, although he can be smart when he wants to be, as demonstrated by his question."

"This will all end tomorrow at the memorial service, won't it?" Galinda asked, sitting down heavily in a chair. "I can't bear this for much longer, Elphie, I keep having that same nightmare, and a dancing skeleton in the rain has started to show up near the end. I'm going crazy, Elphie, I'm going insane."

"No, my sweet, you're going to be fine," Elphaba whispered, standing quickly and pulling Galinda into a tight embrace. "This all ends tomorrow at the memorial service when Madame Morrible makes the announcement of who will replace Doctor Dillamond. Once we get back to our normal schedule, everything will be fine."

She only hoped so.

On the third morning, and the last day where mourning clothes were the required uniform, Elphaba and Galinda headed towards the Shiz Chapel where the memorial service for Doctor Dillamond was being held. Fiyero and Boq were waiting for them by the western service entrance as Elphaba had specified.

"How are you doing?" Fiyero asked Galinda worriedly. She was extremely pale, her eyes were rimmed with red, and she was leaning on Elphaba for support. "Is something wrong? Do you want me to escort you back to your room?"

"I'm fine," Galinda whispered.

Elphaba gave a warning glare to Fiyero when he opened his mouth to speak and he promptly shut it, looking away. Boq also looked worried, but he refrained from saying anything to Galinda.

"Well, are we ready to go into the chapel?" Elphaba asked.

Everyone nodded and they headed towards the main doors where students and professors were streaming in to the memorial service. They sat in the front row quietly, waiting for the service to start.

Finally, the chapel had filled up and the doors were closed. Madame Morrible climbed onto the stage, her little tiktok creature following her. Galinda gasped when she saw the creature and buried her face in Elphaba's shoulder, whose face hardened when she saw the creature. Madame Morrible looked at them with eyebrows raised, but made no comment.

"Today is a sad day," she started, addressing a quiet auditorium. "Because today we mourn the death of one of our dearly beloved professors, Doctor Dillamond. He had an amazing mind and was surely one of the best professors we've ever had at Shiz University. We take a moment of silence to honor his memory."

There was a silence broken only by the whirring of the tiktok creature. Elphaba looked on with disapproval written clearly on her face and Madame Morrible looked at her with a challenging expression.

"Thank you," she said. "And now I would like to give some warning to the students on campus. I encourage you to focus on your studies, have fun with your friends, and enjoy your experience here at Shiz University, but please do not meddle in things that ought not to be meddled in."

She was directing this at Elphaba, and the green girl stiffened as the tiktok creature's gaze focused on her. "The death of Doctor Dillamond was quite unexpected and was a tragic occurrence, but some people are looking into it far deeper than they need to. He died because he slipped and fell onto a shard of glass, cutting a main artery. I have heard the rumors going around the campus and all of them are false. Doctor Dillamond was not murdered, his death was a simple accident."

Several people started to murmur in the audience and she had to raise her voice to be heard. "Unfortunately, we have to replace him as a professor quickly, and fortunately, we have found someone on short notice. This is Professor Nikidik."

An old man climbed up onto the stage, motioning for a young man holding a rectangular object covered in a blanket to follow him. "I am Professor Nikidik," he said, addressing a completely silent and inattentive audience. "And I have brought a demonstration for those students who will be in my classes."

The young man set down the object and pulled off the blanket, revealing a young lion cub in a cage. Elphaba immediately stood up, a look of anger on her face. "What do you think you're doing bringing a defenseless cub in here?" she asked, quaking with rage. "Where is its mother?"

Professor Nikidik looked at her disapprovingly, a small frown appearing on his face as he looked her over. "I would like to ask you not to question my authority, Miss…"

"Elphaba Thropp," she supplied.

"Ah, Miss Thropp," he said. "You are the one Madame Morrible, our esteemed Headmistress, was telling me about. It would do well for you to keep your opinions to yourself and try to learn from this demonstration. Perhaps it will teach you to curb your tongue and think before you speak. Or simply not speak at all."

"I repeat, where is the cub's mother?" she asked. "Can't you see that it's afraid? It's shaking with fear!"

"Perhaps if you sat down and stopped yelling, it wouldn't be afraid," Professor Nikidik said, making her turn a dark shade of green and sit down. "As for its mother, she was killed in an untimely explosion. Now back to the demonstration. Can anyone tell me if this is a Lion or a lion?"

There was complete silence. "Of course, there is no way to tell without his mother, and as I so kindly explained to your classmate, Miss Thropp, before, his mother cannot be… contacted. This is a demonstration, or an experiment of a sort, to see if paralyzing a certain part of the brain meant for feeling and fear will keep it from every speaking. For if you don't feel or are never afraid, what do you have to speak of?" He pulled out a large injection and started towards the cub.

Several people stood up, shouting obscenities and insults at the professor, astounded that he was bringing such a demonstration to the memorial service of Doctor Dillamond. Elphaba leapt up onto the stage and the lights suddenly flashed and blinked out, and suddenly everyone was jerking awkwardly around, as if they were all having seizures at the same time. The only person excluded… was Fiyero.

He stared at her with wide eyes, a look of shock, horror, and relief on his face. Elphaba turned away from him and to the cage, struggling to pick the large contraption up by herself.

And suddenly, it became lighter as one of the sides lifted, and she looked up to see Fiyero standing there, a determined look on his face. She lifted her side and they ran out the side door, cage dangling between them and the small cub being jerked around.

"Careful, try not to hurt him," Elphaba said as they ran into the woods and to the willow tree where their group, their charmed circle, usually gathered. They set the cage down and she knelt down next to it, looking worriedly in at the lion cub. He seemed shaken and afraid, but there were no wounds on it.

"What did you do to those people back there?" Fiyero asked suddenly. "And… why didn't you do it to me?"

"I don't know," Elphaba whispered, looking down at her feet. "It's just… I saw the cub, and how afraid he was, and Professor Nikidik, and then I just got so _mad_. Sometimes… sometimes my magic gets out of control and I can't handle it, especially when I get really emotional. Usually when I get angry."

"Well, don't get angry at me," Fiyero said. He knelt down by the cage and titled it slightly, trying to look in to see the cub better.

"Careful, don't shake him!" Elphaba yelled, causing him to drop the cage.

"I know!" he exclaimed. "What, do you think I'm stupid or something?"

She helped him stand. "No… not _really_ stupid, just a little bit."

He turned away, crossing his arms over his chest, and then turned on Elphaba. "How come every time I see you, you're in the middle of some commotion?" he asked. "Like… with Doctor Dillamond, and now with this lion cub."

"Oh, I don't cause commotions, I _am_ one," Elphaba said, kneeling down and checking the lion cub to make sure it was alright.

"That's for sure," Fiyero muttered to himself.

"Excuse me?" she asked, whirling on him. "So you're just telling me to keep my mouth shut and not stand up for what I believe in?"

"No…"

"Do you think that I want to be this way?" she demanded. "Do you think I want to care this much? Because I don't. It would be so much… so much _easier_ for me if I simply didn't care about anything. And you could have walked away back there, you know."

He shrugged, sticking his hands in his pockets. "So?"

"_So_," she said with a small smile. "No matter how… how _shallow_ or _self-absorbed_ you pretend to be…"

"Excuse me, I am actually deeply shallow and genuinely self-absorbed, thank you very much," he said, crossing his arms over his chest. "And I can see that disapproving look. Not all people are meant to be smart."

"No, you aren't shallow or self-absorbed," she whispered, surprising him. "Or you wouldn't be so unhappy. I can see it in your eyes, every single minute that I'm with you. Whenever you're with Galinda, I can see that you long for something else, something _more_. And when you're with your stupid friends who… who laugh at me for being smart, I can see that you want to be smart, too."

"Oh, okay, I see," he said, putting his hands up in the air in defeat. "Fine, compliment yourself and insult me. If you don't want my help, then I won't give it to you."

Turning, he started to walk away, but Elphaba grabbed his hand quickly, making him turn around. "No, please, don't go," she said.

He looked down at their joined hands and she felt herself slowly being pulled forward. Suddenly, his arms were around her waist and her arms were around his neck. One of his hands came up and softly stroked her cheek. She felt her eyes flutter shut as he leaned forward, pressing his lips against hers, pulling her closer to him.

Then they pulled away from each other, clearing throats awkwardly and kicking at invisible rocks on the ground. "Well, I, uh…, I'd better be getting to safety," he said. "I mean, um, get the cub, yeah, the cub… the _cub_ to safety."

She nodded and he picked up the cage, running out of the clearing and onto the path that lead farther into the woods. Elphaba gently touched her lips, remembering the feel of his lips against hers, the sensation of his arms encircling her waist, the feeling of his finger softly stroking her skin.

Walking out of the woods, she took cover under a bridge as it started to rain. There was laughing from above her and Elphaba realized that it was Galinda… and Fiyero, and something stabbed her in the heart. Tears came to her eyes as she realized that no matter how much she wished and fantasized, Fiyero would never be hers.

Fiyero had all he could ever want. He was rich, he was Prince of the Vinkus, and he had the most beautiful girl at Shiz for a girlfriend. There was no chance that he would trade fair skin, blonde curls, and a girly giggle for green skin, black hair, and no laugh whatsoever. Galinda was someone Elphaba could never be no matter how hard she tried.

"Miss Elphaba, what are you doing out here in this weather?"

Elphaba turned to see Madame Morrible walking towards her. Apparently the Headmistress remembered nothing of what Elphaba had done at Doctor Dillamond's memorial service, or didn't care.

"I was going for a walk and got caught in the rain," she said quietly.

"That is unfortunate," Madame Morrible said, not recognizing Elphaba's subdued tone of voice. "But I have something for you."

She pulled something, a piece of paper, no, an envelope out of her sleeve and handed it to Elphaba. The green girl took it with shaking hands as she realized the color of the paper. The color of her skin. Green, the color of the Wizard, and there, right on the corner of the envelope, was the seal of the Wizard.

"It's from the Wizard," Madame Morrible said, unsuccessfully trying to hide the excitement in her voice. "He wishes to meet with you as soon as possible!"

With shaking hands, Elphaba opened the letter, needing to see this with her own eyes, and was surprised to see a _handwritten_ letter inside.

_Miss Elphaba Thropp:_

_Having heard brilliant things about you from Madame Morrible, I have decided to meet you, preferably as soon as possible. I apologize for this being on such short notice, but I have been unable to contact you in the past few months. Please send my regards to the esteemed Headmistress of Shiz University, and I hope to see you soon._

_The Wonderful Wizard of Oz_

Elphaba looked up at Madame Morrible, a light shining in her eyes, a light that symbolized hope. She was going to meet the Wizard. Finally, she was going to meet the Wizard.

_**Well, that's a very long chapter, but I couldn't really break it up. Hope you liked it. I'll be updating as soon as possible. Thank you to all of my readers and reviewers, I really appreciate all thoughts, comments, and suggestions I get, so REVIEW PLEASE! Thank you again!**_

_**ReallyObsessiveWriter**_


	24. Chapter 24

_**Here's the next chapter. Enjoy!!!**_

Elphaba stood in the parlor, her suitcase at her feet, her satchel slung over her shoulder, and her hat in her hands. She was waiting for Galinda to emerge from the bathroom and go to the carriage station that was to take her to the Emerald City.

The night before, Elphaba had packed her suitcase. Madame Morrible had encouraged her to leave as soon as possible, excusing her from all of her classes. Galinda had been shocked when Elphaba had told her that the Wizard had summoned her, and then had promptly broken down and gone to bed complaining of a headache.

"Galinda, really, I can't wait much longer," she called out. "The carriage is supposed to leave in thirty minutes and I'm supposed to be there in fifteen minutes. If you don't hurry up, I'm going to have to leave without saying goodbye."

Promptly, the door to the bathroom opened and Galinda hurried out, changed with makeup applied to her face. Elphaba smiled when she saw her. She was recovering quickly from the death of Doctor Dillamond. There was no trace of the terror and horror that had haunted her for the past three days.

The two girls stared at each other wordlessly for a moment, and then Galinda threw her arms around Elphaba's neck. Elphaba stiffened for a moment and then embraced the blonde tightly, putting all of herself into the one, simple gesture. She could feel Galinda starting to cry and she rocked her back and forth, holding her tighter.

"Oh, I'll be back before you know it," she whispered. "Two weeks, two weeks is all it will take, and then I'll be back here. You won't even know that I'm gone, with Fiyero, Boq, Nessarose, and Pfannee and ShenShen to occupy you."

"No, it won't be the same without you," Galinda sobbed, holding more tightly to Elphaba, unwilling to let go. "Please, don't go, don't leave me."

There was a knock on the door and Galinda reluctantly backed away so Elphaba could open it. Fiyero stood there awkwardly, looking down at his feet and holding a bouquet of flowers in his hands. It was a small bouquet, nothing like he had ever given to Galinda, and Elphaba stepped back to clear a path to his girlfriend.

"Here, these are for you," he said gruffly, clearing his throat and thrusting the bouquet into Elphaba's startled hands. "I… I heard from Boq and I… just wanted to wish you good luck. You deserve this; after all you've been through, with Doctor Dillamond and all."

They stood there awkwardly, and then Galinda spoke up. "You know, I've been thinking," she said, drawing the attention to herself. "In honor… in honor of the lately deceased Doctor Dillamond… I'm going to change my name. No longer will I be known as Galinda, but simply Glinda. The old Goat never got my name right, and I want to change my name in his honor."

"That… that's very admirable, Ga- I mean, Glinda" Elphaba said as Galinda, or Glinda now, looked pleadingly at Fiyero, who seemed to only have eyes for Elphaba.

"Yes," Fiyero whispered. "Well, good luck Elphaba."

He turned away, leaving the door gaping wide open. After a moment, Elphaba set the bouquet of flowers on the small table and shut the door quietly. "Galinda…"

"It's not Galinda anymore," the blonde said, her voice thick with tears. "It's Glinda now. Stupid, stupid Glinda. What was I even thinking?"

"Oh, Glinda, it doesn't matter, everyone loves you whether your name is Galinda or Glinda," Elphaba said, gently taking her by the arm.

"But don't you see, not everyone loves me," Glinda cried. "No, Fiyero doesn't love me, and he's the one I want. He's… he's _changed_, Elphie, ever since Doctor Dillamond died. I can see that… that he loves _you_."

Elphaba laughed, shaking her head. "Why would he love me?" she asked. "Look at me; I'm just an ugly green girl." But she remembered yesterday by the willow tree with the lion cub. She remembered that kiss, the feel of his lips against hers. The feeling that had suddenly erupted within her.

"Honestly, for someone so smart, you don't see very well at all," Glinda said, tears streaming down her face. "You _are_ beautiful, in your own way."

"We'll leave that debate until I get back," Elphaba said, shaking her head.

And then Glinda broke down, sobs wracking her body as she collapsed to the floor, her face in her hands. Elphaba knelt down next to her, pulling her hands away from her face, taking them in her own. "Please, Glinda, don't cry," she whispered. "Don't, please, you'll make me cry."

But Glinda didn't let up, and she only seemed to sob harder.

"I know," Elphaba said. "Come with me… to the Emerald City."

The journey would have normally taken three days, with good weather, a change of horses, and pleasant companions, but they had none of those. It rained nonstop, turning the dirt roads they traveled on to a river of mud that made it difficult for the horses to move through, and the horses were never changed, for only the rich could have a change of horses at every stop. Even with their money pooled together, Elphaba and Glinda could only manage enough to travel third class. And their companions… their companions were silent, stoic figures wrapped in cloaks and faces shaded with hoods. Elphaba had taken to wearing her hat so only the bottom half of her face could be seen, and Glinda burrowed into Elphaba, seeking to hide from the eyeless stares the other travelers gave her.

Traveling was an exhausting experience. The carriage titled from side to side as it plowed forward at a steady pace. All of the travelers were often tossed around in the little cabin, plowing into their neighbors. Elphaba and Glinda were lucky to have a whole seat to themselves. Glinda clung to Elphaba like a lifeline.

At night, long after the sun had set, the moon had risen, and the stars had appeared, the carriage stopped and the door opened to let the travelers out. Elphaba and Glinda often searched out the cheapest inns, offering the smallest amount of money for the most they could get. It often included a small room with a bed crammed into it, two loaves of bread, a hunk of cheese, and a couple of apples, if there were any.

Elphaba always gave Glinda the larger portion of their food, knowing that the girl had never known hunger, had never known poverty, and had never been in a place where she hadn't had a warm bed to sleep in, a large meal to fill her up, and people to admire her. She always gave Glinda the privacy of their small room to change, knowing she wasn't used to be so open around others. And she always gave Glinda more than half of the bed, although every night, about five or ten minutes in, the blonde moved up against the green girl, snaking her arms around her waist and snuggling into her.

Every morning, Elphaba would wake up long before the sun would rise, light the lamp that was supplied in her room, and tried to decipher the notes Doctor Dillamond had left behind. It was hard to understand everything she had written down for the old Goat, and the time given to her to understand it became shorter and shorter as they drew closer to the Emerald City.

She would wake Glinda up just before the sun rose, giving her the privacy of the room to change, and then hurrying her out to the carriage. They would save some of the meal from the night before to eat in the morning, and then Elphaba would nod off against Glinda's shoulder, since she never slept at night, preferring to stay awake and watch over Glinda, make sure that the pampered girl was okay.

After a week of travel, they finally reached the Emerald City. The large city suddenly loomed up out of the horizon, sparkling a brilliant green in the morning light. Glinda clutched at Elphaba's arm, waking her and pointing out the small window. Elphaba had eagerly peered out the window; trying to get a full view of the city she was sure she would soon become a part of. And the city that was home to the Wizard of Oz.

It took all day for them to reach the city and they barely managed to get through the gates in time. They were the last ones in and started up the cobblestone road that led to the gates just as the guards were starting to close them. The driver had yelled for them to wait, and the guards had given him a stern talking-to before finally letting them in.

Even in the dark, the Emerald City was magnificent. Glinda pressed herself up against the window, trying to take everything as Elphaba and the other travelers watched from back in their seats. Some of the travelers grumbled about Glinda, but none of them did anything as Elphaba lifted the brim of her hat and glared at them all, warning them not to say anything against her friend.

A man dressed in all green waited for them at the carriage depot. He immediately identified Elphaba and stepped forward.

"I am Reiss," he said, bowing, "and I am to be your escort while you are here in the Emerald City, as ordered by the Wonderful Wizard of Oz. You must be Elphaba Thropp, Student of Shiz?"

Elphaba nodded. "And this is my friend and roommate, Glinda Upland of the Upper Uplands," she said. "She joined me on my trip."

"A room has been arranged for your stay, but since no word was sent ahead that Miss Upland was coming with you, nothing has been arranged for her," he said in a regretful tone. "I suppose arrangements could be made for her to have a room in a cheaper hotel, but all of the rooms in the Wizard's Hotel have been reserved and nothing is clear for another five weeks. It's only luck, and the power of the Wizard, that got a suite for you there."

"No matter," Elphaba said. "Glinda and I have been sleeping in a cramped room together for the past week, I'm sure that another night won't matter much, especially if you said that I was to be staying in a suite."

Reiss shifted uncomfortably. "It will be much longer than a day," he said. "A week's wait at the shortest, maybe a month at the longest. Madame Morrible has sent ahead your class work and will be sending it until you leave for Shiz University once again."

"Well, then, we'll just have to make due," Elphaba said. "Glinda, would you mind very much sharing a room with me?"

Glinda shook her head and answered quietly. "No, I would actually prefer it," she whispered. "It's such a big city…" She looked around as she trailed off.

"We'd best be off, then, before curfew starts," Reiss said. "Although I am mostly exempt from curfew, being an advisor to the Wizard, it would not be wise to be caught out this late, or much past this time."

He opened the door of a carriage for them that was marked with the insignia of the Wizard, a very detailed drawing of the Emerald City with a W on it, and they clambered inside, dragging their suitcases behind them. He then closed the door behind them, climbed onto the driver's seat, and snapped the reins at the horses.

The drive was long, for they were traveling from the outskirts of the city towards the middle, almost directly next to the Wizard's Palace. When they finally got there, Glinda had fallen asleep on Elphaba's shoulder, and even the green girl had started to nod off from lack of sleep on the carriage that day. Reiss opened the carriage door and Elphaba startled awake, jolting Glinda awake in the process.

Their luggage was carried into the hotel by a pair of baggage boys and up to their room. Reiss held them back as they started to follow them.

"Tomorrow, you will have a day of freedom," he said. "I assume that you would like Miss Upland to accompany you to see the Wizard, so arrangements have to be made. He was not expecting your friend. The day after tomorrow, I will come at ten o'clock sharp and have brunch with you while explaining everything. Meet me down in the lobby here and a carriage will take us to where we need to go."

Elphaba nodded, putting a supporting arm around Glinda as she started to nod off. They then went up to their room, which was a large suite with a king-sized bed and oversized furniture. Glinda passed out on the bed immediately and Elphaba had to wake her up, push her into the bathroom with a change of nightclothes, and then carry her to the bed herself. After changing into her own nightclothes, she immediately fell asleep next to Glinda, grateful for a comfortable bed, warmth, and the companionship Glinda provided.

_**Well, hope you liked it. Thank you to everyone who reviewed the last chapter:**_

_**moodified**_

_**ghostly bender**_

_**And thank you to all of my other reviewers and to my readers. I really appreciate all thoughts, comments, and suggestions, so please REVIEW!!! I will try to update as soon as possible.**_

_**ReallyObsessiveWriter**_

4


	25. Chapter 25

_**Here's the next chapter. It's a little longer. Enjoy!**_

Rolling over, Elphaba froze when she realized that something else was in her bed with her. Not just something else, but _someone_ else. Silently, she turned her head to see blonde hair on the pillow next to her and sighed in relief when memories of the past week came rushing back. Carefully, she slipped out from under the blankets and out of the bed, trying not to wake Glinda up.

Walking over to the curtains, she pulled them slightly back to reveal a stunning view of the city below. They were up on one of the highest stories of the building in one of the tallest buildings in the city, with only the Wizard's Palace being taller than it. She hastily closed the curtains as Glinda moaned, covering her face as a ray of sunlight hit her.

"Where are we?" she moaned, sitting up and rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

"The Emerald City," Elphaba said, barely able to contain the excitement in her voice. "We're in the Wizard's Hotel. We arrived late last night."

"What did that man say last night about meeting with the Wizard?" Glinda yawned, stretching and getting out of bed. "I can't really remember, I was so tired."

"He's going to be meeting us tomorrow at ten o'clock sharp in the lobby," Elphaba said. "We have a day of freedom, today. I suggest we see the city now, before we are caught up in meetings and interviews to try to see the Wizard. I don't know how long it will take, so we might as well see what we want to see today, and we can always go back when we have spare time and squeeze other things in."

"Are you going down now?" Glinda asked.

"I planned on changing first, but yes, I'll be going down as soon as I'm ready," Elphaba said. "Well, as soon as you're ready, that is."

"Do you want the shower first?" Glinda asked.

"Uh, sure," Elphaba said. She grabbed a white blouse and blue pleated skirt from her suitcase, her Shiz uniform. Going into the bathroom, she quickly took a shower, brushed out her hair, and dressed herself, coming out ten minutes later to find that Glinda had once again fallen asleep. Chuckling to herself, she put away her clothes and gently shook Glinda awake.

"Oh, Elphie, you should wear your hair down more," Glinda said, coming out of the bathroom to see Elphaba braiding her hair.

"It gets so annoying," Elphaba said, finishing the braid and tying off with a hair band. "You would get annoyed, too, if you had hair as long as mine. It's a lot easier to control this way. If you're really that intent on getting me to wear my hair down, I'll wear it down tomorrow."

Elphaba pulled her boots on and grabbed her satchel, slinging it over her shoulder. Glinda put her purse over her shoulder, handing one of the two room keys to Elphaba and putting the other in her purse. The two girls then set out to explore the Emerald City.

They stopped in a café and got breakfast, far better than they had had in a week. Glinda got a croissant and a small coffee and Elphaba just got an apple, biting into it as she paid. No one seemed to mind the coloring of her skin, but then again, everyone's skin seemed to have a faint tint of green to it due to the emeralds that had been cemented to the sides of the buildings. And then most people were wearing green-tinted glasses, so _everything_ would be green to them. As soon as they walked out of the café, they were offered a pair for themselves, and Elphaba, on Glinda's urging, hesitantly put them on.

She stopped and stared. So _this_ was what it was like to see someone with green skin. Except everyone here had green skin with the glasses, instead of just one person. Glinda looked up at her, a worried look on her face. "Are you okay?" she asked quietly.

"It's all _green_," Elphaba whispered, looking around in amazement. "I mean, not just the buildings, and the roads, and the merchandise, but the people too! No one's staring at me because of my skin color! Glinda, it's like I actually _belong_ here!"

"I've… I've never asked, but I've always wondered," Glinda said. "What… what's it like? To be green, I mean."

Elphaba stared at her with a look of surprise on her face. "I… I've never really thought about it," she whispered. "You know how people look at me weird, call me names, and poke fun at me, but I've never thought about how it feels. Normal, I suppose, I mean, it's just like having skin, there aren't any side affects. It's no different to you have pale skin, the people of the Vinkus have darker skin, or the Quadlings have rose-colored skin."

They both looked away from each other, and then Glinda grabbed Elphaba's hand, pointing to a man who was handing out tickets down the street. "Look, Elphie, he's handing out tickets to the Wizomania!" she exclaimed. "Let's see it!"

She dragged Elphaba down the street and managed to get the last two tickets, handing them to the green girl to keep safe. "The show is at two o'clock," the man said. "Bes sure not to be late, because the doors close and aren't opened until the next showing. Your seats can always be filled, it's very popular."

"Thank you, sir," Elphaba said, tilting her head slightly, and then Glinda was dragging her down the street to look at another marvel.

Walking up and down the streets, Elphaba and Glinda wondered at each sight they came across. Glinda would point out different types of architecture, identifying buildings from different time periods, but most of them being industrial modern architecture.

"You see, the Wizard mandated the construction of the Emerald City almost twenty years ago," Glinda said, surprising Elphaba with her knowledge. "At the time, this area was just a small town. Very few of the buildings here are from the original town. No one even remembers the name. All of the buildings from then were either knocked down or built onto so they look more modern. I'm surprised the city was built so quickly, though. It would have normally taken decades for a city of this size to be built, and it only took seven years."

"How do you know all of this?" Elphaba asked.

Glinda shrugged. "I've always been interested in architecture," she said. "Whenever I could, I would try to get my hands on books about buildings and cities. It's just… sort of a hobby. And a dream."

They were both quiet as they wandered down the street slowly, taking in the sights. "You know, when I first met you, I would have never taken you for someone who would love architecture," Elphaba finally said. "Of course, I would have never guessed that we would end up as friends, either, so I guess the unexpected can always happen."

"And I would have never taken you as someone who cares enough about what other people say to go to the Wizard about it," Glinda said, and Elphaba stiffened. The blonde glanced over at Elphaba and sighed. "Elphie, look, I know you care. You're always so… tense and guarded at Shiz. And now you're sort of… carefree and nonchalant…"

"Dancing through life," Elphaba suggested wryly.

Glinda was silent for a moment. "I suppose you could say that," she whispered.

"Oh, Glinda, I didn't mean anything by it," Elphaba said, remembering the blonde's conflict with Fiyero. "I'm sorry, I can be really stupid sometimes, you know. Really, I've never been good socially. Well, obviously."

"It's okay," Glinda said, looking up at the great clock tower that loomed over the Emerald City. "Oh, Elphie, come on, we'll be late for Wizomania!"

She grabbed Elphaba by the arm, dragging her towards the theater and they managed to make it in just in time. Taking their seats, the lights dimmed and actors and actresses tumbled onto the stage, reenacting the entrance of the Wizard of Oz in his great balloon. The music was played by an orchestra underneath the stage, and the actors were all dressed up in different colors, tumbling and leaping across the stage.

When the show ended, Elphaba and Glinda headed back to the hotel room, thoroughly exhausted from walking around all day. Glinda collapsed on their bed when they got there.

"This is the most fun I've ever had in my whole life," Glinda said happily.

"You know, you should probably write your parents," Elphaba said thoughtfully.

"Why do I need to write my parents?" Glinda asked, sitting up.

"Well, Madame Morrible probably wrote to them telling them that you disappeared and that she suspects that you went to the Emerald City with me," Elphaba said. "They'll no doubt be worried about you."

Glinda's eyes grew wide. "They'll pull me out of school," she whispered. "And then I'll have to get married to some old man and have his children… I won't be allowed to go back to Shiz. Elphaba, you have to help me!"

"Everything will be fine," Elphaba said quickly, sitting down next to Glinda. "I'm sure the Wizard could do something about it. We'll just mention it when we go see him tomorrow, or whenever we're going to see him. I promise that I won't let your parents take you out of school so you can get married to some old man."

"I should have never come," Glinda whispered.

Elphaba bit her lip and looked away. "I'm glad you came," she whispered.

"Oh, Elphie, you know I don't mean it like that," Glinda said, taking Elphaba's hand in hers. "It's just… it was a spur of the moment decision and I should have thought it out more before I did anything. I probably should have gone to Madame Morrible and asked her if I could have an excuse for an absence of class."

"We'll figure everything out, I promise," Elphaba said, squeezing Glinda's hand gently and looking into her eyes.

OZOZOZOZOZOZOZOZOZOZOZOZOZOZOZOZOZOZOZOZOZOZOZOZOZOZOZ

Elphaba and Glinda were standing nervously in front of the tall doors that led to the Wizard's throne room. Reiss had been able to get them in to meet the Wizard almost immediately and the only thing that had been left to arrange was the Wizard's actual consent to see them. One of the four palace guards that had been standing in front of the door had gone into the throne room to announce them to the Wizard.

The palace guard came out and signaled for the rest of the guards to help pull the heavy gold doors open all the way so Glinda and Elphaba could go through. Elphaba could almost swear that one of the guards muttered 'good luck' to them before the doors slammed closed behind them.

The corridor the two girls had just entered was pitch black except for the small lights that lit up the way down the hall. Grasping each other's hands, Elphaba and Glinda slowly made their way down the corridor. Both of their hearts beat more and more quickly as they drew closer to their destination. Finally a large chamber opened up before them, although it was even darker than the corridor had been.

Suddenly torches around the edge of the room burst into the flame and a large gold throne was illuminated, along with the figure of a skeleton dancing in the rain. Glinda gasped, stepping back, but Elphaba kept tight hold of her hand, keeping her from running back the way they had come. She had a suspicion.

"I am Oz, the Great and Terrible," the skeleton said, although its jaw didn't move. The voice seemed to come from all around them. "Who are you?"

Elphaba stepped forward slightly. "I am Elphaba Thropp, Third Descending of Munchkinland," she said. "And this is my friend and roommate Glinda Upland of the Upper Uplands. We were sent by Madame Morrible."

Suddenly the room blacked out.

"I think you made him mad," Glinda whispered.

The room lit up, although the light emanated from lights on the ceiling rather than the torches set up around the edge of the room. A white-haired man was climbing out from behind the gold throne and the skeleton hung there, now obviously held up by wires and string. Glinda gasped in shock, her brow wrinkling as the man walked towards them.

"Ah, Miss Elphaba Thropp," he said. "I've been expecting you. I trust your trip here was pleasant?"

"Not exactly, but that's to be expected when traveling third class," Elphaba said.

"And Miss Glinda Upland," he said, turning to the blonde. "An unexpected addition to the visit. I'm very pleased to make your acquaintance."

"What is all of this?" Elphaba asked, gesturing to the skeleton.

"Oh, it's a bit extravagant, isn't it?" he asked, looking up at the skeleton with pride. "But it's what people expect, and you have to give people what they want. Besides, it's one of my greatest creations. I take pride in what I create, I'm really good with my hands, you see."

"I'm so happy that I finally get to meet you," Elphaba said breathlessly.

"Well, that's what I'm here for," the Wizard said. "To make people happy. And because I believe that _everyone_ deserves the chance to fly."

"I _knew_ you'd help!" Elphaba exclaimed. "You see, Glinda and I aren't just here for ourselves. You see, something bad is happening to the Animals in Oz, and Doctor Dillamond was…"

The Wizard shook his head and held up his hand, cutting her off. "I know what you're here for already," he said.

"You do?" Elphaba asked.

"Of course I do!" he exclaimed. "I'm the Wizard of Oz! And I fully intend to grant your request, but… you must prove yourself, first."

"What do you want me to do?" Elphaba asked.

"Madame, please bring out the book!" the Wizard yelled.

Turning, Elphaba was surprised to see Madame Morrible dressed in a green gown walking towards them. In her hands, she held a large, thick, leather bound book. Going over to the Wizard, she stood next to him.

"I believe you might recognize my new press secretary," the Wizard said.

"Girls, you'll find that the Wizard is a very generous man," Madame Morrible said with a smile. "If you do something for him, he will do much for _you_."

"Well, what do you want me to do?" Elphaba asked.

"Chistery!" the Wizard yelled.

A monkey dressed in a suit walked into his room, supporting himself on his knuckles. The Wizard patted him on the head. "This is Chistery, my monkey servant," he said. "He really is a good servant and is more of a son than a servant, really. But he's always watching the birds out the window. I think he wants to fly."

"I suggest… a levitation spell," Madame Morrible said, holding out the book and opening it.

Galinda stepped forward. "Is that… the Grimmerie?" she whispered.

"Yes," Madame Morrible said, clearly annoyed by the blonde. She gave the Grimmerie to Elphaba, who sat down on the floor and studied the page intently. "Now, if you can't decipher any of the words, that's perfectly okay. I could only translate a little of it…"

Elphaba started to chant, her movements suddenly governed by some otherworldly force. She felt power rushing through her, gathering in the pit of her stomach and then suddenly exploding out from her. There was a shriek and suddenly she snapped out of her trance.

Chistery was shrieking, clawing at his back and jumping around.

"What's happening to him?" Elphaba asked her eyes wide.

"It's working!" Madame Morrible yelled excitedly. "She could read the Grimmerie! Oh, I told you, I told you!"

Two small bumps suddenly appeared on Chistery's back and then broke through the fabric of his suit, growing into wings. He continued to screech as if in pain.

"He's in pain, someone help him!" Elphaba yelled. "There has to be some spell in here that will undo this…"

"Once you cast a spell, you can't undo it," Madame Morrible said excitedly. "Oh, didn't I tell you that she had the power? She's perfect!"

"You…" Elphaba whispered, staring at Madame Morrible and the Wizard. "You planned this all along, didn't you?"

"Why, yes," the Wizard said. "And this is only the beginning. Look."

He pulled a lever and the curtain behind the throne began to move, splitting at the middle to reveal a cage full of screeching monkeys with wings sprouting out of their backs. Elphaba gaped at them until the Wizard pulled the lever again, the curtain once again covering the cage.

"If this is what you can do on your first try, then sky's the limit!" he yelled.

"Yes, they'll make perfect spies," Madame Morrible said, rubbing her hands together eagerly.

"_Spies?_" Elphaba asked incredulously.

"You're right," the Wizard said. "'Spy' is a very strong word. How about scouts? They'll scout out rebel Animal activity…"

"It's you," Elphaba whispered. "It's been you all along who has been supporting the Animal Banns. _You're_ the one who initiated them, not the citizens of Oz! How could you? And to think that I thought you would actually help!"

"No, Elphaba, please listen. You have to understand," the Wizard said desperately. "You see, when I got here, Oz was in turmoil, split into a thousand different clashing groups. Where I come from, everyone knows that in order to unite a country, you have to give the citizens a common enemy…"

"And you're blaming Animals when they haven't even done anything wrong!" Elphaba yelled. "How could you?"

"Please, my dear, you can go very far," the Wizard said, holding out his hand. "Both of you can." He pointed to Glinda and she rushed forward, eagerly taking his hand.

"Oh, thank you, Your Ozness," she said eagerly.

"Because _both_ of you deserve the chance to fly," he said, gesturing for Elphaba to join them. "With you two by my side, there's nothing we couldn't do."

"No!" Elphaba screamed, backing away from him and clutching the Grimmerie to her chest. "I thought I could trust you and that you would help me, but all you've done is opened my eyes to who you really are. You're a powerless and cowardly man who sits behind a contraption ruling Oz through a _toy_. There was nothing you could ever do to help me. And I'll let you know that I'd rather fight you for the rest of my life than join your little alliance with Madame Morrible and lie to Oz."

She ran out of the room, past a startled Madame Morrible.

"Elphie, come back!" Glinda yelled, running after her. "I'm sorry, your Ozness, but I'll go fetch her back for you. This is all just a terrible mistake, she didn't mean anything of what she just said, honest."

Glinda ran out of the room after Elphaba.

"We have to get her before she tells anyone anything," the Wizard said, running behind his throne. "She knows too much."

"I will do what I can," Madame Morrible said, curtsying to him before rushing out of the room.

The skeleton above the throne rose up into the ceiling and a large, golden head lowered down in its stead, hovering just above the throne. The lights went out and the torches around the edge of the room burst into flame. "Guards! Guards!" the head yelled, its eyes burning with a red fire.

Five guards rushed into the room immediately, saluting the giant head.

"There is a dangerous girl loose in the castle. Her skin is as green as sin and if she isn't stopped, she will cause much harm to my city and my people. Find her, capture her, and bring her to me!"

"Yes, Your Ozness!" the guards said in unison, saluting the great head before splitting up and running off in different directions to find Elphaba.

OZOZOZOZOZOZOZOZOZOZOZOZOZOZOZOZOZOZOZOZOZOZOZOZOZOZOZ

Elphaba pounded down the hall, the Grimmerie clutched close to her chest. She could hardly believe that had just happened. Not only had she caused harm to an innocent animal, but the Wizard and Madame Morrible had planned it out in advance and the Wizard was behind the Animal Banns popping up all over Oz.

Coming to a small wooden door, Elphaba yanked it open and started running up the stairs she found there. She could here someone calling after her, but she dared not stop and wait for them. For all she knew, it could be the Wizard, Madame Morrible, or the guards the Wizard was sure to send after her.

"Elphaba, I said… to wait… up!" someone yelled, and she heard the door slam shut and footsteps on the stairs behind her.

She came to another door and burst through it into a large, circular room with large windows looking down on the city. Glinda suddenly burst into the room behind her, her face red. Elphaba quickly went to the door and slammed it shut, barring it shut with a broomstick she found leaning against the wall. Turning to the room, she quickly scanned the walls for a door that would lead out, but there were only the windows.

"There aren't any more stairs!" Glinda exclaimed, going to one of the windows and looking down. "And I am not jumping from this high up. We would never make it."

"It would be better to die than work with that trickster," Elphaba muttered.

Glinda turned to Elphaba angrily. "Why did you have to do that?" she yelled. "I mean, really, you couldn't just stay calm for _once?_ This is just like what you did with that lion cub at Doctor Dillamond's memorial service! And in the front hall when we were getting our room assignments at the beginning of the year! Is there _any_ possible way you can control your temper? You know what, you've ruined everything for yourself. You'll be lucky if the Wizard ever forgives you for what you did back there! And you think you're the smartest person in Oz, too! Well, guess what? You aren't!"

"Excuse me?" Elphaba whispered dangerously. "You were the one who missed the whole point of that. They want to use me to create minions for them out of innocent animals so they can spy on Animals and kill and capture them! I came here partly because I wanted the Wizard to lift the Animal Banns, and here I found out that the Wizard is behind it all along with Madame Morrible! And you're snuggling up to that _bastard_ and groveling at his feet like you're his personal servant because you just want to feel important!"

"Citizens of Oz!" a voice suddenly said, echoing throughout the city. Elphaba and Glinda rushed to the window, looking down to see Madame Morrible standing on a balcony, addressing a crowd of Ozians below her. "There is an enemy who must be found and captured. Believe nothing she says, she tells only lies. She is responsible for the mutilation of these poor, innocent monkeys."

There were gasps as the cage of winged monkeys was revealed and people began to scream in terror. Madame Morrible continued. "Her green skin is an outward sign of the evil that lurks beneath the surface. This distortion, this… repulsion, this… _Wicked Witch!_"

People began to scream and Elphaba and Glinda turned away from the window. Elphaba closed her eyes, leaning against an old wardrobe for support as anger coursed through her body.

"Oh, Elphie," Glinda said, taking her hand comfortingly. "Don't be afraid."

Elphaba shook her head, opening her eyes and grinning. "But I'm not afraid," she whispered, looking down at Glinda. "It's the Wizard and Madame Morrible who should be afraid… of _me_."

"No, Elphie, just… say you're sorry," Glinda said quickly. "Before it's too late. I'm sure the Wizard will forgive you and let you go back to Shiz, at least, if you don't want to help him. But don't give up your dream. Do you remember how excited you were to see him earlier? You can still have everything you've dreamed of, everything that you've ever wanted."

"You don't understand, Glinda," Elphaba said, yanking her hand out of the blonde's and walking away, her back facing her friend. "I don't want it anymore. All my life, I've had people bossing me around and telling me what to do. My father and Nessa at home, Madame Morrible and my professors at Shiz, and now the Wizard? This is my chance to break away from all of that. I don't want to be manipulated like a chess piece on a board. I don't want to be a pawn of the Wizard."

Glinda gaped at her. "Elphie…" she whispered.

"No, Glinda," Elphaba said harshly. "I've made my decision, I'm not going to start second-guessing myself now. That only leads to mistakes, and look what's happened to me before. I'm not going to ignore what I know now and pretend that everything is fine and dandy, because it isn't. It's time that I took charge of my own life. No one is going to boss me around anymore, and if I'm trapped here in this tower…"

She moved over to the window and opened it, looking over the ledge. "I'm going to close my eyes, leap… and defy gravity."

"Get away from there, you're going to kill yourself," Glinda said, grabbing Elphaba by the arm and pulling her away. "I don't know how to get this through to you, Elphaba, but you're being delusional. You're being delusional. The Wizard…"

"Stop it, Glinda," Elphaba said, pulling away from Glinda again. "No, everyone has always told me what can and can't be done. Well, my father told me that I would never get into Shiz University, and look, I'm enrolled at Shiz. Everyone told me, even I told myself, that you and I would never become friends, and look at us! We're in the Emerald City together!"

"Standing in the Wizard's attic debating whether or not you're going to jump out of a window!" Glinda said, putting her hands on her hips. "Elphaba, this isn't the right thing to do. The Wizard can help!"

"You know, there are some things I can't do," Elphaba said, completely ignoring Glinda's statement. "But I'm never going to find out unless I try it out for myself. Look, Glinda, I can't go back there, and I can't go back to Shiz, either. It's not the place for me. I've never done anything for myself because I've always been afraid that I would lose my sister and my father… but now I realize I've already lost them. There's nothing here for me."

"Let me guess, you're going to defy gravity," Glinda said in a sarcastic tone, crossing her arms over her chest.

There was banging on the door. "Open up in the name of the Wizard!" a guard yelled, and there was more banging.

"You've run out of time, Elphaba, you have to do whatever you're going to do quickly or go back to the Wizard," Glinda said. "And I personally suggest you go back to the Wizard and apologize. Come on."

"The levitation spell," Elphaba said, kneeling on the ground and flipping through the pages of the Grimmerie. She came to the page and began to chant. "Ah tay…"

"You stop that…"

"…ah tu…"

"…right now…"

"…teckum ahr…"

"...that's what started…"

"…rahr tum…"

"…this mess in the first place. Put that…"

"…ah tay…"

"…away and…"

"…ah tu…"

"…just…"

"…teckum ahr rahr tum…"

"…STOP!!!"

There was a loud bang and both girls waited breathlessly for the wings to sprout out of Elphaba's back. Nothing happened.

"Elphie, where are your wings?" Glinda whispered. "Maybe you aren't as powerful as you think you are."

Elphaba's head drooped and she looked over at the door as the guards continued to bang on it. Then she saw the broom she had barred the door with hovering in the air. Her eyes widened as she realized that she had cast the spell on the broom instead of herself. Glinda followed her gaze and backed away.

"Sweet Oz," she whispered. "Elphie…"

"Oh, I told you, Glinda," Elphaba said, stowing the Grimmerie in her satchel, getting up, rushing over to the broom, grabbing it out of the air, and holding it out to Glinda. "Quick, get on."

"What?" Glinda asked. "Do you know how unsafe that is?"

"Glinda, come with me," Elphaba said earnestly. "Think of what we could do… together. The Wizard was right. With the two of us together, we could do anything we wanted to. We both have power, Glinda, and we can use it to help the Animals, overthrow the Wizard, and establish a new government."

"We could, couldn't we?" Glinda whispered, putting a hand on the broom and taking Elphaba's hand in her own. "Together."

"Yes, Glinda, together," Elphaba said, grasping her hand tightly. "Just you and I. Think about it. We'd be unstoppable. So, are you coming?"

Glinda backed away. "Oh, Elphie… you're trembling," she said, going over to the wardrobe and pulling out a thick, black hooded cloak. She put it around Elphaba's shoulders, clasping it at her neck. "I can't come, Elphaba. This… this is what I saw in Yackle's crystal ball. Please, just… stay here with me. We can do the same thing here, in the Wizard's Palace. Look, we can overthrow the Wizard from the inside."

"No, Glinda, I can't stay here," Elphaba said. "I'm sorry. But I hope you're happy."

"You, too," Glinda whispered, grasping her friend's shoulder tightly.

The door suddenly burst open and Elphaba disappeared into the shadows as guards streamed into the room. Two of them grabbed Glinda by the arms, restraining her.

"Elphaba, come back!" Glinda yelled. "There's been a big misunderstanding; she really doesn't mean any harm. What are you doing to me? Get off me!"

"It's not her that you want," Elphaba said, and a blast of light knocked the ring of guards surrounding her off their feet. "I'm the one you want, it's me! It's _me!_" She flew out of the window, looking down at the Emerald City and the terrified citizens who had gathered to see her. Her cloak billowed out around her, making her seem even more terrifying.

"Don't think I'm just going to go away!" she yelled, her voice somehow amplified. "I'm going to be watching you, and you had better make sure that you don't leave an opening in your security, because as soon as I see an opportunity, I'm going to take it. And if you ever need me… well, look to the western sky."

This last statement was aimed at Glinda. She locked eyes with her best friend before turning and flying off into the sunset.

_**Hope you liked it. As you might know, this is the turning point of the story, and I'm really looking forward to writing the rest. I have some things planned that aren't included in the musical or the book. Thank you to ghostly bender for reviewing the last chapter. I'm kind of put out by the lack of reviews, actually. I would really appreciate it if you did review. I really appreciate all suggestions and comments, really, I do. Thank you to all of my other reviewers and to my readers. Tell me what you think about this chapter. Thanks again!**_

_**ReallyObsessiveWriter**_

10


	26. Chapter 26

_**Here's the next chapter. Enjoy!**_

Elphaba circled over Shiz University, being careful to make sure nobody could see her. After she had defied the Wizard a week ago, she had become a fugitive, hiding from Gale Force squads that had been sent out to capture her and living in abandoned sheds and barns she could find on the way to Shiz University. It took her much longer to get to Shiz than she had expected, and that was because of everyone looking for her and the fact that she could only ride her broom when it was dark.

She tilted the broom down slightly and her feet hit stone as she landed on the balcony of her room. It seemed so long ago when she had left Shiz for the Emerald City. Not only did it seem long ago, but it seemed like a whole world away. She had changed since she had met the Wizard.

Listening attentively, she heard nothing in the room and whispered a small spell, unlocking the balcony doors and quietly stepping into the room. Everything was quiet, except for the even breathing of Glinda, who was strewn across her bed, her eyes rimmed with red from crying. Elphaba's face softened when she caught sight of her roommate. She had never meant to leave her best friend all alone to fend for herself in the Emerald City, but she had no other choice. She leant her broom against the wall and went over to the bed.

"Glinda," she whispered, kneeling by her bed and shaking the girl slightly. "Wake up." She slapped a hand over Glinda's mouth as the blonde's eyes flew open. Glinda started to struggle, but grew still when she saw Elphaba standing over her. Elphaba held a finger over her lips and slowly took her hand away.

"What are you doing here?" Glinda asked, sitting up quickly. "You're going to get caught. Madame Morrible…"

"Isn't here," Elphaba finished for her. "She left two days ago, and the magical wards she put up around the University aren't very strong and are easy to get past. Most of them are set up on the ground, and she's forgotten that I can fly right over them. Besides, a lot of them are being broken by students getting in late from partying."

"You still haven't answered my question," Glinda whispered. "What are you doing here? Even if Madame Morrible really has left, it's still dangerous for you. There are tons of people who would love to turn you in…"

"I hope you aren't one of them," Elphaba said, backing away from Glinda, looking around the room warily. "Don't tell me that you actually believed the Wizard when he said that I'm a wicked witch, you know me better than that."

"Of course I didn't believe him in that!" Glinda whispered angrily. "Do you think I'm stupid? Now tell me why you're here!"

"Because I didn't give you a proper goodbye and I wanted to see you," Elphaba said. "But I see now that you don't want to see me, so I'll just be leaving now."

"No!" Glinda said, catching her by the arm as she left. "I want to see you, I really do, it's just… I've been so worried about you and I don't want you to be caught. You're my best friend, Elphie, and I just want you to be safe, no matter what the Wizard or Madame Morrible says about you."

"What happened after I left?" Elphaba asked. "Did you go back to the Wizard or did Madame Morrible just lecture you and send you back here?"

"The guards asked me a ton of questions about you," Glinda said, sitting down on the bed, patting the spot next to her for Elphaba to sit down. The green girl looked at the spot warily before gingerly sitting down. "They asked me stuff about your family, where you lived, who you're friends with, and where you go the most when you're at Shiz and stuff like that. I didn't know the answers to most of the questions they asked me and they got kind of upset, but you… didn't really tell me a lot about your family and stuff."

"They're probably going to try to get to my family," Elphaba muttered. "I'm going to have to look in on Nessa while I'm here to make sure that she's okay… or maybe I shouldn't. They'll be expecting that."

"Elphie, the Wizard… he told me that if I ever see you to tell you that you can always come back and join him," Glinda whispered, putting her hand on Elphaba's.

She jerked her hand back, looking at Glinda like she was crazy. "I'm not going back," she whispered angrily. "After what he's done? Glinda, I can't trust him. I don't know if he's going to do anything that would hurt the Animals, or anyone that I love. He just wants to use me, Glinda."

"I told him that you'd say that," Glinda said, looking away. "He told me to tell him if you ever come to see me. I'm not going to. You're my best friend, Elphaba. I can't tell him, and I'm not going to. You can trust me."

Elphaba put a hand on Glinda's shoulder. "I know I can trust you," she whispered. "You're the only real friend I've ever had, and I'm glad that you're trying to protect me. But I won't be coming back again, so there won't be any more need for you to lie to the Wizard if he calls you in to question you."

"He's not going to call me in to question him," Glinda whispered, looking up at Elphaba with tears in her eyes. "After the semester is over, I'm going to go and join him. Elphaba, you have to understand, this is the only thing that's going to keep my parents from pulling me out of school and taking me back home to get married. They'll be proud of me, Elphaba."

"You're… you're going to join him?" Elphaba whispered, eyes wide with disbelief. "But… but he lied to me! To us! To all of Oz! How can you go back to him? He's just going to use you, too!"

"My parents were really mad that I went to the Emerald City with you, Elphaba," Glinda said. "They said that they were going to pull me out of school. I mean, they were here waiting for me, Elphie! The only thing that kept them from taking me home was Madame Morrible telling them that the Wizard wanted me to become his Public Relations Advisor! This is my chance, Elphie! And Fiyero's going with me, too. He's going to go into the Gale Force."

"The Gale Force?" Elphaba whispered. "The people who are hunting me down and trying to capture and kill me? Glinda, that really isn't comforting that Fiyero, one of the people I used to hang out with, is now going to join the Gale Force."

"He's going to be assigned to protect me," Glinda said. "Elphie, just… come back, _please_. I… I can't trust anyone anymore, not even Fiyero. He's become cold and distant, and he won't listen to me anymore, not really. I mean, he says that he's listening, but I can tell that his mind is somewhere else. Elphaba, you're the only person I can really trust anymore."

"I'm sorry, Glinda, but I can't come back," Elphaba said. "I've gone down a path that I can't turn from, and you can't follow me where I'm going, either. But if you ever need me, take this, whisper my name, and I'll come as fast as I possibly can. You'll always be my friend, Glinda, it's just… we've chosen opposite paths." She handed Glinda a necklace she had whispered an enchantment over and the blonde took it and put it around her neck.

"Elphie," Glinda whispered, tears streaming down her face as she embraced her best friend. "What am I going to do without you?"

"Like you did before we became friends," Elphaba whispered, hugging her back and stroking her hair comfortably. "You're going to do what's necessary to stay on the good side of people. Say whatever they tell you to say, Glinda, and don't argue with them. Stay safe."

They hold on to each other, tears streaming down both of their faces. Finally, Elphaba lets go and rushes around the room, gathering some items and stowing them in her satchel. A journal she had gotten for her eighteenth birthday from her sister, a couple of her favorite books, some food, some necklaces she had inherited from her mother, all of the money she had saved up, some pens and pencils, the crystal ball Yackle had given her, and an extra change of clothes. She turned to Glinda, who had stood up and was holding something out to her.

"Take this," she whispered, opening her fist to reveal a wad of cash. "I don't need it anymore, the Wizard is going to be taking care of me now, and you need it far more than I do."

"Glinda…" Elphaba started.

"No, this is the least I can do," Glinda said, thrusting the money into Elphaba's hands. "I want to do everything I can to make sure you aren't going to kill yourself now that you're on the run."

"Thank you," Elphaba whispered, putting the money in her satchel. "I'll pay you back someday, I promise. This is all going to end one day, I'll be able to come back here and finish my education, finish Doctor Dillamond's research, and I'll be able to be friends with you again. But for now… this is goodbye."

"Can I ask you one thing?" Glinda asked.

Elphaba nodded.

"Why are you still wearing the hat?"

The green girl grinned. "It suits me, makes me look a bit more evil," she said. "After all, I _am_ the Wicked Witch of the West now, aren't I?"

"No, you could never be wicked," Glinda whispered.

"Let's just keep that between you and me," Elphaba whispered back. "Goodbye, Glinda."

The two girls embraced once again before Elphaba grabbed her broom and slowly backed out onto the balcony. She mounted her broom, waving goodbye to Glinda before rising into the air and flying out of sight. Glinda rushed out onto the balcony and stayed there long after Elphaba had disappeared. That was where Madame Morrible found her in the morning, staring out at the rising sun, clutching the stone railing with her right hand and the necklace Elphaba had given her in her left hand.

_**Well, that's that. I can't wait to get writing the next chapter. Thank you to everyone who reviewed the last chapter:**_

_**ghostly bender**_

_**GreenBabiesRule**_

_**moodified**_

_**Western Sky**_

_**Sage DarkTalon**_

_**Thank you to all of my other reviewers and to my readers. I really appreciate all thoughts, comments, and suggestions, so please REVIEW. I'll get the next chapter up as soon as I can. Thank you again!**_

_**ReallyObsessiveWriter**_

4


	27. Chapter 27

_**An explanation for my absence is at the end of the chapter. Extra long chapter just for you guys. Almost seven full pages in a word document!**_

Two years passed, and Elphaba became known throughout Oz as the Wicked Witch of the West. Rumors circulated through towns and across the countryside, about how took babies from their cradles and replaced them with wild beasts. About how she took the eggs from chicken coops and sucked them dry, leaving the empty shells underneath the chickens to be found the next morning.

She could shed her green skin and appear as an innocent child who lost her parents to the plague, and then later she would kill the mayor of the village, cackling as she flew away on her broomstick. And you couldn't sneak up on her because she had an eye in the back of her head that never closed. You couldn't see it, but it could see you.

The only hopeful rumor about the Wicked Witch of the West was the fact that her soul was so unclean that water could melt her. Every citizen in Oz placed a pail of water by their bedside at night, just in case the Witch decided to sneak up on them and try to put a spell on them in their sleep. All newborn infants were baptized immediately after birth to make sure that the Witch hadn't detached her soul from her body and attached it to the infant's body.

Through all of this, Glinda the Good Witch of the North protected the citizens from evil, casting small enchantments on their crops to keep them from failing, healing small cuts and scratches on tiny children, and blessing babies. Whenever the Witch was sighted, she would conjure up her mode of transportation, a giant pink bubble, and make her way to the sight as quickly as possible. The Witch would more than likely be gone by the time she arrived, but she would calm the distressed citizens, give a rousing speech, and leave to cheers and clapping.

Elphaba watched everything going on throughout Oz through her crystal ball, usually set up on a tree stump in the middle of a forest. As far as she knew, she hadn't made any public appearances to anyone other than the Animals she strove to help. Most of the 'sightings' were blackbirds in the sky, wild animals just outside the bounds of the town, or a person dressed up as a witch to give a village a good scare.

She watched Glinda more often than anything else. It surprised her to realize that she missed her bubbly blonde friend more than she missed her sister, father, and Shiz altogether. Several times, she had considered sneaking into the Wizard's Palace and up to the room where Glinda was staying to apologize, or just to see her in person, but she had never gained the courage to do so. That was the one thing she was afraid of. To be scorned and rejected by the one person who had accepted her for who she was.

So hours had turned to days, and days had turned to weeks, weeks had turned to months, and months had turned to years. After two years of trailing Glinda, of catching glimpses of her, and of preventing plots to take her life, she decided she would finally go to see her. One of the Animals she had rescued a few months before, a young Badger, had brought her news of a celebration for Glinda just outside the Emerald City in a large clearing in the middle of the woods. It would provide enough cover for Elphaba so she couldn't be spotted and it would allow her to get close enough to Glinda to talk to her.

"You will come back, Miss Elphaba, right?" an old Sow asked, trying to keep her Piglets from running off into the trees where she couldn't see them. "You know you'll always have a home here, no matter what."

"I'll see what I can do," Elphaba said, smiling down at one of the Piglets, picking him up and setting him down right next to his mother. "But I prefer not to spend too much time in any one place in case Madame Morrible tries to track me down using her magic. I'm a fugitive, and anyone I spend time with is in danger, and you're in enough danger as it is."

She was referring to the fact that the Sow and her Piglets had been in hiding for over three months. Elphaba had rescued them from a squad of Gale Forcers who had been threatening them to tell where the Wicked Witch of the West resided. Before then, the Sow had never set eyes on Elphaba and couldn't answer, even if she had wanted to. Elphaba had come in, knocking out the Gale Forcers and wiping their memory with a spell she had found in the Grimmerie. She had deposited them with a Bear who helped them construct their home deep in the forest, away from the dangers of the Wizard.

There was rustling in the bushes and Elphaba turned around, her hands held out in front of her in order to ward of an attack. The Sow gathered her Piglets and hurried them into the wood hut, closing the door behind her. Suddenly, a Deer burst into the clearing, breathing heavily, his head hanging low as he tried to catch his breath.

"Is there something wrong?" Elphaba asked.

"No one is chasing me," the Deer said after catching his breath. "But Recto, the Falcon you rescued two weeks back, told me that there was to be a ball at the Wizard's Palace tonight, and that the Wizard was going to make an appearance in the ballroom. That means that he isn't going to be in the Throne Room. The winged monkeys will be unguarded. It may be our only chance to rescue them in a long time."

"But weren't you going to see your friend?" the Sow asked, coming out of her home, her Piglets at the lone window watching them.

Elphaba hesitated. "My friend can wait," she said. "She doesn't know that I'm coming to visit her, and what she doesn't know won't hurt her. I can always visit her some other time, but we might not get a chance to rescue those winged monkeys again for a long time. This is the first time in two years that I even have a chance of getting in the palace without being spotted, and I'm not going to let that go to waste."

"Do you need anyone to go with you?" the Deer asked.

"No, I'm not going to risk someone else's life," Elphaba said. "Besides, it's my fault that they are the way they are, and it's only fitting that I'll be the one to rescue them. When does this ball start?"

"Sundown," the Deer said automatically. "So you have a few hours to get to the Wizard's Palace. You will be able to make it, won't you?"

"I'll have to use my broom, but I'll fly low over the trees so no one will be able to see me," Elphaba said. She whispered a short chant and her broom came whizzing through the trees, coming to a stop before her. It quivered, almost as if it was excited, but it stilled with a glare from Elphaba. "If I'm captured, don't come after me. There will no chance of a rescue unless you storm the palace, and if you do that, many people will be killed on both sides."

"Then you're just going to have to not get caught, because I know a lot of Animals who would risk their lives to rescue you just as you did to rescue them," the Deer said.

"Just… try your best to convince them to not come after me," Elphaba said as she mounted her broom. "And try to stay out of trouble. Tell everyone to stay in hiding until I come back, and if I'm not back in three days, then use the evacuation plan to get everyone to the Quox."

The Deer nodded and watched Elphaba as she slowly rose into the air, coming to a stop just above the tops of the trees and leaning forward, urging the broom to zoom ahead. She knew that the chances of her going back to that clearing was very small considering that she knew Madame Morrible was watching for her. Ever since she had left Galinda in their room two years ago, she had been waiting for Elphaba to come back and visit.

She kept low over the trees until the Emerald City came into sight. She descended through the trees at the edge of the woods and changed a spell to temporarily cover the color of her skin so she could get into the city unnoticed. Taking her hat off her head, she put it in her satchel, and then she swung her broom over her shoulder, striding towards the gate leading into the Emerald City.

The guards merely glanced at Elphaba before motioning for her to go in, not even asking her why she had a broom slung over her shoulder. Without the characteristic green skin, Elphaba was disguised well and no one, except perhaps Glinda, Fiyero, Madame Morrible, and the Wizard, would know that it was her.

Memories of her last visit to the Emerald City came to mind as she made her way to the Wizard's Palace. The last time she had been here was with Glinda when she had actually been excited to see the Wizard. Before she had found out that he was a fraud and could do nothing to get rid of the color of her skin and make her look normal. Glinda had pulled her through the city, commenting on articles of clothing in shop windows or styles of architecture. They had gone to the Wizomania together, watching the actors tumble across the stage and sing about the greatness of the Wizard.

Elphaba slipped down a side alley, making sure no one saw her, and pulled the Grimmerie out of her satchel, setting it down on an upturned crate and flipping through it. Finding the spell she was looking for, she studied it quickly before reciting it. Her clothes changed into an elegant ball gown, her boots turned into high heels, her hair combed itself out, putting itself up in an elegant knot at the back of her head, and makeup appeared on her new pale skin. She put the Grimmerie back in her satchel, whispering another chant that made her broom shrink enough so it could fit in along with the Grimmerie. Finally, she changed her satchel into a small handbag that matched her dress.

Walking out of the alley, she turned quite a few heads as she made her way to the Wizard's Palace. She could see many others walking, and a line of expensive carriages rumbled down the cobblestone road to be let in at the gates. Three guards were standing at the gate, checking people's invitations, letting them in if they had one and turning them away if they didn't. Elphaba glanced over at a woman's invitation and followed her to the gate.

"Invitation?" the guard there asked gruffly.

Reaching into her handbag, Elphaba pulled out an invitation identical to the one the woman before her had. He barely glanced at the invitation before waving her in, already asking the person behind her for their invitation. Elphaba breathed a quiet sigh of relief and made her way up the green carpet leading to the Palace.

Glinda was waiting at the doorway, cheerfully greeting everyone who was coming in, and Elphaba started to panic. She hadn't counted on seeing Glinda, and she definitely hadn't counted on Glinda seeing her. The Good Witch paused as Elphaba approached her, looking at her curiously. "You look familiar," she said, slowly reaching her hand out to shake Elphaba's. "Do I know you?"

"Of course you do," Elphaba said, disguising her voice with her magic. "I'm a reporter for the Emerald City Herald. You invited me personally. My invitation has your actual signature along with a note on it." She procured her invitation and Glinda stared at the note with pursed lips.

"Yes, yes, I remember now," she whispered. "I'm sorry, I'm having a little trouble with my memory with everything going on, especially since no one has had a sighting of the Wicked Witch of the West in over three weeks. We're thinking that she's planning to do something big soon and we want to be ready for her. I'm just hoping it isn't tonight."

"Didn't you two go to school together?" Elphaba asked, still in her disguised voice. "There have been rumors going around and I want to make sure these rumors are facts before publishing them. It wouldn't do to publish falsehoods about the generous Glinda the Good Witch of the North."

"I have no idea where you got that information from, but it is certainly not true," Glinda said almost immediately.

Elphaba nodded. "I will have to confront my source about that, then," she whispered. "Well, I must be getting on, I have many people to interview. Hopefully I can get in with the Press Secretary. Thank you very much for inviting me."

"Of course," Glinda whispered, and Elphaba moved on into the ballroom, glancing around to see a door leading out to a small corridor. Making sure no one could see her; she slipped through the door and headed down the hallway as fast as she could in the heels she was wearing. Snapping her fingers, her clothes turned back to normal, as did her satchel. She quickly pulled out her broom so it wouldn't rip her satchel and headed down the hall, looking for a way into the Throne Room.

"Hey, what are you doing back here?" Elphaba turned to see a girl dressed in some rags standing behind her with her hands on her hips and a broom over her shoulder. "If you're here for the party, you're in the wrong area of the Palace."

"I wish I were here for the party," Elphaba said. "I'm supposed to be sweeping the Throne Room, Madame Morrible personally told me to, except I'm new and I have no idea where it is. Do you… do you think you could give me some directions?"

The girl squinted her eyes at her suspiciously before shrugging. "Sure, just take this hall as far as you can go, turn left, and go through the door at the end of the hall. That's the servants' entrance. Just don't touch the throne and don't touch the curtain, or you'll be in big trouble. The last girl who did that is in the Southstairs and she won't be getting out for a long time, if she's getting out at all."

"Thank you, I owe you one," Elphaba said, already heading down the hall. She took the directions the girl told her and snuck into the Throne Room, heading right to the large curtain she knew concealed the winged monkeys. Pulling the lever, the curtain slowly opened, revealing several dozen screeching monkeys wrenching at the bars of the cage that was containing them. Her skin color returned to green as she let the spell go.

"Don't worry, I'll get you out of there, just hold on," Elphaba whispered, searching her mind for a spell that would work. She didn't want to get the Grimmerie out here because she was afraid Madame Morrible would walk in at any moment and take it from her. It was best that she didn't take it out until she was well away from this place.

"Miss Elphaba, why am I so surprised?"

Elphaba whirled around to see the Wizard standing directly behind her, a grin on his face. She stepped back, pointing her broom at him, ready to use her magic and casting a net of magic around to see if Madame Morrible was hiding in the shadows, getting ready to attack her.

"My Press Secretary doesn't even know that you're here," the Wizard said. "And I'm not going to tell her. I just want to talk to you. No trickery, I promise."

"Why should I trust you?" Elphaba sneered.

"I just want to talk," the Wizard repeated. "I know that I disappointed you very much when we first met, and I want to apologize for the way I treated you and the way I used you. Can I explain?"

"Do I have a choice?" Elphaba growled.

"You see, I'm not really from Oz. I'm from a place called Texas. About twenty-one years ago, I got blown into Oz in my hot air balloon. For about a year, I travelled around Oz in my balloon, seeing the sights, meeting the people, until finally I made my way to the Emerald City. When I landed, I was proclaimed leader of Oz, the Wizard of Oz, they insisted. I didn't plan on becoming all of this. It's just… I have to admit that all the power went to my head."

"So you lied to me, to Glinda, to everyone in Oz," Elphaba said accusingly.

"No, you see, Oz needed a leader," the Wizard said. "When I got here, everything and everyone was in turmoil. I almost literally built this city from the ground up. It was a very extensive project, but I got it done in about seven years. Of course we're still building, adding on to the edge of the city, knocking down the wall in places to extend it and burning down old buildings so we can build new ones. When I took control, the Emerald City, and Oz itself, became more civilized, more modern. You wouldn't live in the same Oz as you do if it hadn't been for me."

"Well, I wouldn't really know what that was because I haven't really been immersed in society for the past two years," Elphaba said coldly. "It's kind of hard when you're marked as a criminal."

"And I want to fix that!" the Wizard exclaimed. "I'm going to tell all of Oz that it was all a big mistake, and it really was. You see, you can rule beside me, together we can be everything you've ever dreamed of. We can find a spell to correct the color of your skin permanently, and there'll be a celebration throughout Oz that just for you!"

"That… that is what I've always wanted," Elphaba whispered, lowering her broom.

"You'll be wonderful," the Wizard said. "And you'll be reunited with Glinda. You can visit your sister in Munchkinland. And everyone will revere you."

"I'll be wonderful," Elphaba whispered. "I think… I think I will join you. On one condition."

"Anything," the Wizard said.

"You set those monkeys free," Elphaba said, pointing to the cage of monkeys.

He nodded and pulled the lever that opened the cage. Monkeys hesitantly approached the gap, and then realizing that they were free to go, squeezed through it, screeching as they flew out of the room.

"Fly, monkeys, you're free, fly away, as far as you can!" Elphaba screeched, laughing maniacally.

"Grommetik!" the Wizard yelled, and a familiar tiktok creature whirred as it made its way into the room.

"You," Elphaba growled. "You're the one who ordered Doctor Dillamond's murder! I should have known better than to trust you."

"Well, we couldn't just let him wander around spouting out his research," the Wizard said defensively. "I mean, if we had, then we wouldn't be able to target the Animals as an enemy of all of Oz. I've already explained this to you…"

"You're the same man you were before," Elphaba said angrily. "And I swear that I will fight you until the day I die!"

The Wizard rushed behind his giant head and it immediately lit up, rising into the air. "Guards! Guards!"

Five guards rushed into the Throne Room, Fiyero at their head. "You called, Your Ozness!" Fiyero yelled.

"Yes, take care of this Wicked Witch!" the Wizard yelled.

Fiyero locked eyes with Elphaba and she was sure that he would find some way to set her free or to accidentally let her escape. He couldn't believe all the lies the Wizard had told Oz about her since he had known her when they went to Shiz together.

"You four, I want you to go and get buckets and buckets of water," he said. "As much water as you can carry. Don't question me, just go get it. And if you come back with any less than I know you can carry, then you will be punished most severely."

Elphaba's hope faded as Fiyero pointed his gun at her and the other guards rushed out of the room. The Wizard appeared from behind his throne and Fiyero didn't look surprised in the least.

"Please, Fiyero, it's me, Elphaba," she whispered.

"Silence, Witch," Fiyero shouted, and tears stung her eyes.

One of the doors opened and Glinda rushed in, her mouth falling when she took in the whole scene. "What's going on here?" she demanded. "I heard shouting coming from here and this is what I walk in on? Fiyero, put that gun down, its just Elphaba. I apologize your Ozness, we're old friends from Shiz, Fiyero, I said to put that gun down."

She rushed towards Elphaba and wrapped her arms around the green girl's torso. "How come you haven't written, Elphie?" she asked. "I've been worried sick for the past two years."

Elphaba noticed the necklace around Galinda's neck, the one she had given to her nearly two years ago in their dorm room at Shiz. It was half of a heart, colored green. Elphaba had the other half, colored pink, around her own neck.

"She's the Wicked Witch of the West," the Wizard said. "And she's a criminal. Captain Tiggular, shoot her. Miss Glinda, get out of his way."

"No," Fiyero and Glinda said at the same time. Fiyero turned his gun on the Wizard. "Unless you want to be exposed to all of Oz, I suggest you let Elphaba go free."

"Fiyero!" Glinda and Elphaba yelled at the same time.

"Elphaba, go!" Fiyero yelled.

"Wait, you two, all along, behind my back?" Glinda asked.

"What are you talking about?" Elphaba asked. "Fiyero, shut up, I'm not going and letting you get killed."

"Yeah, we were kind of going behind your back," Fiyero said. "And yes, Elphaba, you have to go."

"I'm not going, and Glinda, that's a lie," Elphaba said.

"So that kiss two years ago meant nothing?" Fiyero asked.

"It was a mistake!" Elphaba yelled as Glinda squinted her eyes dangerously at her. "I didn't mean to. It just… happened."

"How come you didn't tell me about this?" Glinda asked.

"Because you were already really upset about me leaving and about Fiyero," Elphaba said. "It was just before Madame Morrible told me the Wizard… why am I even explaining this? It meant nothing, Glinda."

"Elphaba, go!" Fiyero yelled.

"Just go, Elphaba, I don't care," Glinda said.

"But…"

"Go!" Glinda yelled, tears streaming down her face, and Elphaba obeyed, mounting her broom. There were gunshots and yells and Elphaba screamed in pain as a bullet tore into her arm. She crashed through the glass roof, showering everyone below with glass colored green and gold. The last thing she saw before she flew away was the hurt look on Glinda's face and Fiyero being dragged away by guards.

_**Okay, I know you're all mad at me because I haven't updated in well over a month. I couldn't get on the computer for about a week, I went on vacation for awhile, and then had an extensive case of writer's block. I'm sorry, please forgive me. I'll be trying to update regularly now. Please review, I really appreciate it. Thanks!**_

_**ReallyObsessiveWriter**_

8


	28. Chapter 28

_**Here's the next chapter. Sorry that I haven't updated for so long. I'll try to finish this story up since it's almost finished. Maybe ten, fifteen more chapters.**_

Elphaba crouched on the roof of the Wizard's Palace, watching as Fiyero was dragged forward in front of Madame Morrible and Glinda. It had been two weeks since Elphaba had escaped from the Wizard with the help of Fiyero and she had heard of horrible things being done to him in order to try to coax her location out of him. He hadn't known where she was, so he obviously hadn't said anything, but she had a feeling that he was trying to make things as hard for the Wizard as possible.

The day before, Elphaba had received word of Fiyero's execution, which had been scheduled when it became apparent that he either didn't have any location about her whereabouts or wouldn't tell them. He was to be executed by firing squad at eleven o'clock in the morning, but if Elphaba could help it, he wouldn't be killed. He had risked his life to save hers, and now she would do the same for him. She wouldn't let another death rest on her shoulders.

Madame Morrible was searching the skies, expecting Elphaba to come and rescue the man who had saved her life. Glinda was also searching the skies, but she had an anxious and hopeful expression on her face, almost as if she was glad Elphaba hadn't shown up yet.

"Well, we have to commence with the execution," Madame Morrible said reluctantly after fifteen minutes. "Stand him up against that wall over there. Fiyero Tiggular, late Captain of the Guard, is to be executed due to high treason. Is there anyone here that objects of this charge or punishment?"

"I do," Elphaba said, standing up on the roof and drawing all of the attention to her. "Don't have your soldiers shoot at me or I'll deflect the bullets back at them and make sure they hit their marks."

"What do you want?" Madame Morrible asked.

"Set Fiyero free and I'll trade myself for him," Elphaba said. "I'll give myself over to you without any struggle as long as he can go free and take my things with him. But you have to promise not to seize him as soon as you have me in your custody and not to go searching through my things. I want to see him walk out of the gate free."

Madame Morrible looked at her contemplatively as the soldiers in the courtyard turned to face Elphaba, pointing their guns at her. "Fine," Madame Morrible finally said. "You come down here, give your things to Master Tiggular, and he'll be set free when we take you into custody. I promise that you'll be able to see him walk free and that we will not pursue him once you have been executed."

"Good," Elphaba said, grasping her broom tightly in her hand and flying down to the ground, touching down lightly near the group of soldiers that were surrounding Fiyero. The group of soldiers parted at a wave from Madame Morrible and one of them cut the restraints from his wrists, although the guns still remained pointing at both Elphaba and Fiyero. Elphaba handed her things to Fiyero with a sad look in her eyes.

"Elphaba, what are you doing?" he whispered urgently, taking her satchel and broom from him.

"Don't question me," Elphaba said. "When they let you go, get out of here as quickly as you can. There should be someone outside the walls who will be able to help you get to a safe spot that Madame Morrible won't be able to find. Honestly, I don't trust any promises that she makes."

"You're sacrificing your life for mine," he whispered.

"Just as you were going to do for me," Elphaba said. "Now go." Two soldiers came up behind Elphaba, tying her hands behind her back and shoving her through the crowd of soldiers to the platform Madame Morrible, Glinda, and the new Captain of the Guard was standing on. She glared up at Madame Morrible, who smiled down at her smugly. Motioning for the soldiers to step back out of hearing range, Madame Morrible shook her head.

"Oh, Miss Elphaba, things could have turned out so much differently for you if you had just listened to what I had to say," Madame Morrible said. "Didn't you listen to anything I told you while I was teaching you? In order to rise in the ranks, you have to do what your superiors tell you to do, and in your case, your superiors are the Wizard and I. Look at how well Miss Glinda has done, and that's all because she listened to what I had to say."

Elphaba looked at Glinda to see an indifferent expression on the blonde's face. When their eyes connected, tears started to form in Glinda's eyes and the blonde looked away towards Fiyero, who was being escorted to the gate. They all watched as he ran out of the gate, the soldiers watching him as he began to disappear from sight.

"I never wanted what you or the Wizard wanted," Elphaba said calmly, turning to face Madame Morrible. "You always manipulated others for your own gain, and I always wanted to do what was best for others. It's not right, what you do, and while I may be the most hated person in all of Oz, I know that what I'm doing is right. People may not see that what you're doing is wrong right now, they'll see it eventually, and when that time comes, you're going to regret everything."

"That will never happen," Madame Morrible said smugly. "Do you want to know why? Because when you die, all rebellion from the Animals will die out in Oz because they look up to you. When they see that their leader is dead, they'll give up. This is the end, Elphaba. You are the sole person standing between the Wizard and total dominance over everyone in Oz. And you are about to be terminated."

She stood up straight to address the soldiers. "I want to see the Witch suffer!" she yelled. "Do what you wish with her, I don't care. When you are finished, line her up against the wall and shoot her."

A soldier stepped forward at the wave of encouragement from Madame Morrible and, with a large grin on his face, hit Elphaba in the middle of the back with the butt of his rifle. She groaned in pain, falling to her knees as the force pushed her forward. Suddenly, she got another knock to the back. Looking up, her eyes connected with Glinda's, who had tears running down her face. No one noticed the moment of connection between the two young women, that space of one second where they seemed to look into each other.

_Forgive me,_ Elphaba mouthed as she got another hit, this time to the head. Glinda covered her mouth with her hands, choking back a sob and preventing herself from screaming. A soldier pulled Elphaba to her feet, yanking at her arm mercilessly. Another soldier punched her in the face, knocking her backwards into three men. They laughed as they grabbed her, throwing her to the ground, their boots connecting with her body.

Five minutes passed. Then ten. Twenty. Thirty. An hour. Two hours. Finally, the crowd of soldiers was satisfied with what they had done to the Witch and stepped back to reveal the bleeding and broken form of Elphaba. With a wave from Madame Morrible, two soldiers hauled her to her feet and supported her as they turned to face her towards the platform.

"Glinda," she whispered, her eyes fluttering as she struggled to remain upright and conscious. "It wasn't what Fiyero said at all. There was… there was nothing between us after I left. He… he had no contact… with me, nor I with him. I-I'm sorry."

The Good Witch gasped, shaking her head and turning away from Elphaba, her shoulders shaking as she sobbed. Madame Morrible ignored this, dismissing it with a wave of her hand. She smiled down evilly at Elphaba. "Enjoy the last few moments of your life, Elphaba," she whispered. "Take her to the wall and shoot her on my signal!"

Elphaba didn't struggle as the soldiers lifted her by the arms and carried her to the wall, shackling her hand with a chain that hung from a hook far above her head. She closed her eyes, letting the chain bear all of her weight. Whispering under her breath, she heard a yell from Madame Morrible and the obedient shots from rifles as the soldiers fired at her. There was a brief feeling of weightlessness before everything went black.

_**Sorry that I haven't updated in so long. There's been a lot going on, and all that stuff coupled with writer's block doesn't result with quick updates. Thank you to everyone who reviewed the last chapter:**_

_**ghostly bender**_

_**-greenTARDISgal-**_

_**ev80**_

_**Once again, thank you for reviewing and please continue to REVIEW. I'll get the next chapter up as soon as I can.**_

_**ReallyObsessiveWriter**_

4


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